Itachi Uchiha: Turn Back the Pendulum
by deathmachine2
Summary: Just as the Edo Tensei is fading, Itachi reflects on his failures. Coming to a decision about them, he unleashes a jutsu from the days of the Rikudo Sennin that he had found during his travels, only able to use it due to the infinite chakra granted by the Edo Tensei. Using the ultimate space-time ninjutsu, he skyrockets back in time to the day he got the Mangekyou. Itachi centric.
1. Chapter 1

Itachi Uchiha: Turning Back the Pendulum

Chapter 1

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"I'm still going to destroy Konoha brother. You chose your path, and I have chosen mine." Sasuke said to the zombie that was his elder brother as Itachi prepared to release the Edo Tensei.

"I can't do anything to stop you little brother. If that is your decision so be it." And with that Itachi finished the seals to release the Edo Tensei. As he began to fade, guilt weighed upon him. How could he have let it come to this? How could he have let his brother fall to the darkness? To destroy the very village he had sacrificed everything for? As he felt himself fading a last thought popped up in his mind. There was one thing he could do. He thought about what he had just said.

'Sasuke, maybe if I had put my faith in you. Maybe if I had approached you from the very beginning we could have changed mother and father's minds together.' Itachi had said.

There was one sharingan ability he knew about. No Uchiha but him should have known it. On his journeys as a child, he had discovered it, something the Rikudo Sennin had invented. Something that the God of Shinobi had refused to use under any circumstances do to the despicable nature of the technique. Itachi had discovered an ancient tablet that spoke of its power. Koshin. It was without a doubt the strongest power of the Mangekyou Sharingan, even surpassing the Izanagi in power. This jutsu didn't cause the loss of an eye though. It was however, the most chakra intensive jutsu in existence, one no living being, Jinchuriki or not, could accomplish.

The key word here was living. Itachi was currently a construct of infinite chakra and regeneration. He had one shot at this. He would turn back time to the very beginning of all of this. To the moment of the creation of his Mangekyou Sharingan. It was a one way trip, and there was no guarantee that even with the supposedly infinite chakra that this would work. He didn't even know if this would allow him to keep his mind intact nor if there were any adverse effects.

But for the sake of saving his brother from his darkness, to try and save his clan from their arrogance, to hopefully put an end to the violence before this war even had to begin… Itachi would give anything for that.

In his last moments Itachi made a single hand seal Sasuke had never seen before.

"Forgive me little brother. I am about to do something so abominable that even the Rikudo Sennin refused to use it. Goodbye little brother. Koshin!" Itachi yelled. What occurred next was felt across the entire battlefield. The amount of chakra expelled from his being to fuel this jutsu caused everyone to freeze. Even Madara froze for a moment. Then the effects of the jutsu began. Reality and time itself began to tear apart. People began screaming in fear as the very world around them began to warp.

"What's going on?! What did you do?!" The Raikage shouted.

Madara looked equally shocked.

"This is not my doing… Reality itself is warping. This is without a doubt the strongest space-time ninjutsu ever used. But who? How?" Madara asked as he felt himself begin to tear apart. On the other battlefield similar thoughts were going through Obito's mind.

All of the ninja, everyone in the world, began screaming in agony as the chakra began to overtake them. Then it all stopped. An explosion. Everything went black.

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Itachi screamed. This was one of the first and only times anyone would ever hear this man, no boy, scream. The agony coursed through his body as what felt like fire flowed through his veins. Opening his eyes he felt something warm and sticky running down his face. He wiped his face and saw blood. Looking up he saw he was at the river where his best friend had killed himself for the sake of giving Itachi the power to protect the village from his clan. Itachi was in a state of pure shock.

'It… worked? It worked…' Itachi thought, dumbfounded that his theory was correct. The last thing he remembered was an explosion of pure chakra, agonizing pain, and then darkness.

Itachi washed his face and made his way back to the village. This was the first time Itachi had entered the village in nearly five years. Everything looked the same. Nostalgia filled the young man. As he made his way to the compound a group of kids ran past him. He remembered them… they were Uchiha. He had killed them. He was close to clan's compound then. As he laid his eyes upon the gate to the compound his breath hitched in his throat. He hadn't been here since the massacre almost ten years ago. He reigned his feelings in and calmly entered the compound as he had done a thousand times before.

He entered his home, and guilt rose in his chest. There, sitting at the table, were his mother and father, alive and well. He stared at them trying to hold himself together.

"Itachi… you look like you've seen a ghost. What's wrong?" His mother, Mikoto, asked. His father, Fugaku, merely looked up and raised an eyebrow.

"Just thinking about what we talked about the other night." Itachi said, his cool façade back on. His expert skills at lying took over. He managed to hide and signs of his previous guilt.

"You're not having second thoughts are you? You remember this is for the good of the clan. Understood?" Fugaku said coldly. He knew Itachi was an Anbu and felt some guilt betraying the village he swore to protect.

"Of course not father. Just worried. What if the plan fails?" Itachi asked calmly.

"It won't. The Uchiha are the mightiest of this village. We cannot lose." Fugaku said with an air of finality, leaving no room for argument. Itachi merely nodded. He heard the door open and Sasuke entered the room. After all of the shocks he had received today, he managed to control himself at seeing his little brother again, the same way he had left him when he killed his family. This time would be different. He would fix his mistakes.

"I am going to retire to my room for now. I won't be eating dinner tonight." Itachi said as he walked away.

"Brother, do you want to train with me." Itachi froze at that, a flood of memories rushing through his head. He would always poke his brother on the head and tell him not this time. He didn't have the courage to train with his brother, knowing he would forever traumatize the boy. Something needed to change.

"Sure Sasuke. Get your equipment." Itachi said shocking everyone. Itachi had never been willing to train with Sasuke, only teaching him sparingly. Fugaku narrowed his eyes. He didn't like the game Itachi was playing.

"I thought you were going to go rest Itachi?" Fugaku asked. Itachi met his gaze.

"I owe Sasuke a training session for all the time I blow him off. Besides, I need to polish up my skills." Itachi said, walking out the door with an excited Sasuke in tow.

Upon reaching the training grounds Itachi stopped abruptly with his back to Sasuke. Sasuke looked at him with concern as he saw his brother tense up.

"Sasuke… there's something I need to tell you. Better yet, let me show you."

Itachi turned suddenly, his sharingan blaring. Then Sasuke felt fear run through his veins. The sharingan transformed into something more. It looked like a three sided shuriken now.

"Tsukuyomi." Itachi spoke. Suddenly Sasuke found himself in a black and white world.

"Brother… what's going on? What are you doing? Why is your sharingan like that?" Sasuke asked his mouth moving a mile a minute.

"Just watch. I will explain in a minute." Suddenly the black and white world turned into a battlefield. Sasuke was terrified, when he suddenly recognized the burning village. It was Konoha. Uchiha and Anbu were fighting in the streets. His father and mother had just cut down a silver haired jonin with a sharingan and were now fighting the Hokage. Death was surrounding him. He saw his classmates, dead on the ground. Their throats stray kunai littering them, some half burned. He watched his mother die. Suddenly his father's eyes transformed and he lit the Hokage on fire with black flames before several Anbu cut him down as well. Sasuke fell to his knees crying.

"Why brother?! Why are you showing me this?!" Sasuke shouted through his tears as he vomited.

"This is what are clan wishes to do. They are planning a coup. Now I will show you one of our village elders wants me to do." And with that the scene changed to the Uchiha compound. Bodies were strewn about, kunai littering the area, throats slit, blood pooling everywhere. In his house Itachi cut down his mother and father. Sasuke walked in and Itachi punched him in the stomach as Sasuke charged him.

"Why… why Itachi?" the other Sasuke said.

"I wanted to test my capacity. You are weak. Hate me. Let your hatred grow for me, and find me when you have the same eyes as me." Itachi said as he disappeared. The other Sasuke chased after him throwing a kunai at him, knocking his headband sideways. He saw a single tear run down his brother's face as they made eye contact. The scene faded and Sasuke looked at his brother terrified.

"Why… Why did you show me that?" Sasuke asked, his voice small.

"Because, these are the choices laid out before me. I can either allow our family to perform a coup of the village government, and allow thousands to die, or I can massacre the clan and end it before it gets to that point."

"… Which are you gonna choose Itachi?" Sasuke asked in the same tone as before.

"I will protect the village at any cost. Even if it costs me my family. However I've come to realize I can't do everything by myself. If I accept help, maybe I can take a third option. If we talk to mother and father, if you help me, we can stop any of this from happening. Will you help me Sasuke?" Itachi asked. Sasuke was silent for a long time.

"I love mother and father. And I love the clan. But when I entered the academy I swore and oath to protect this village. So yeah brother, I'll help you. Hopefully they listen. When should we confront them?" Sasuke asked.

"Tonight. I'm going to tell you how I got these eyes. To get these eyes you need to witness someone close to you dying. Shisui killed himself in front of me for the sake of helping me save the village. They are going to try turning his suicide into me murdering him. They don't trust me." Itachi said shocking Sasuke.

"O… okay brother. Let's do this." Sasuke said, trying to strengthen his resolve.

Night came and Sasuke and Itachi returned home. Sasuke stormed inside first, unable to contain his emotions any longer.

"How could you do this?! How could you turn on the village?! When were you planning on telling me?!" Sasuke shouted at his mother and father. They froze, eyes wide and stared at him.

"How… how did you find out?" Mikoto asked her youngest son. It was at that moment Itachi walked in.

"I told him."

"You bastard! How dare you bring him into this?!" Fugaku said standing up. He made a move to charge Itachi in his anger, but in a flash he was knocked onto the table with a kunai at his throat. He stared with wide eyes, not even having seen Itachi moved. Mikoto already had a kitchen knife in her hand, prepared to fight her son if necessary.

"How dare I? How dare you?" Itachi hissed.

"Itachi, what is the meaning of this?" Mikoto shouted.

"I told you he couldn't be trusted! He's the Hokage's lap dog!" Fugaku yelled.

"Shut up!" Sasuke shouted silencing everyone. He was breathing heavily, adrenaline rushing through his system.

"How could you…?" Sasuke asked. Itachi stepped back allowing his father to stand. Mikoto lowered the knife in her hand and everyone stopped for a moment. Fugaku and Itachi refused to break eye contact, their Sharingan's blazing.

"The village has abused our clan enough. They take away our say, they lock us off in a compound on the outskirts of the village, which was once a prison. We were the co-founders of this village, and they refuse to trust us. They think we are traitors. Enough! We are going to take back what's rightfully ours!" Fugaku yelled. Itachi fixed a glare on him.

"Father… that doesn't make any sense. You are just proving their point that we are traitors by turning on the village. We just need to prove our loyalty and we will get the recognition we deserve! Look at Itachi, he never once showed a sign of betrayal and they made him captain of the Anbu!" Sasuke yelled back. Fugaku and Mikoto froze at that. They couldn't argue that. They didn't want to agree though.

"Father. Mother. Understand this, I am stronger than both of you together. If you turn on this village I will end you." Itachi spoke with an edge to his voice.

"You would betray your family? Your own blood? You're no Uchiha then you traitorous bastard!" Fugaku yelled, though Mikoto had a contemplative look on her face.

"Fugaku… what if Sasuke's right? Are we truly doing the right thing? By proving them right about us being traitors? Shouldn't we keep our pride and not betray the village?" Mikoto said slowly, barely believing the words herself.

"You too…?" Fugaku asked, his voice broken.

"We won't lose though! We are the Uchiha! The strongest! We are- urgh!" Fugaku was cut off as Itachi punched him across the face knocking him through the table. Mikoto was on Itachi in a second, but she too was defeated as Itachi kicked her across the room into a wall. A small trail of blood leaked out of her mouth. Fugaku rolled up and charged at blinding speeds. What ensued was a vicious taijutsu fight between the clan head and his heir.

"Stop it! Stop!" Sasuke yelled. Both men froze again, still in their stances.

"You both really are going to stick to this belief? The belief that we can regain our honor without fighting?" Fugaku asked, still not breaking eye contact with Itachi.

"It is the clan's arrogance that is its downfall. If you all realized you weren't infallible then the village would acknowledge you instead of punish you." Itachi spoke. Fugaku looked torn before sighing.

"I will not strike down my own children. Very well. I will call off the coup. If we don't begin to get the recognition we have earned, then I will take over this village." Fugaku said defeated. Mikoto stared at the two as Sasuke helped her up.

"You've grown strong Itachi. And wise." Fugaku spoke. Itachi nodded.

"And you as well father." And with that no one spoke for the rest of the night.

Two nights later Itachi was woken by screams. Instantly he was out of bed and threw on his Anbu armor and his weapons. The screams were coming from in the compound. Suddenly realization came across his face. He had already made the deal with Madara to destroy his clan.

"No… Itachi whispered as he entered the center of the compound. He saw his father fighting with the masked man, and losing miserably. Behind him was a terrified Sasuke and an injured Mikoto. Bodies were strewn about. That's when Itachi saw it. His girlfriend, the girl he had loved as a child. The girl he had killed years ago. She was dead on the ground. He froze in fury.

This proved to be a bad decision, as his father was cut down. Madara moved to kill his mother next.

"Father!" Sasuke shouted. He charged the man but was quickly batted away.

"No!" Itachi was on the man in an instant, kicking him. Madara hadn't expected it and didn't phase in time and was sent careening through the air. Landing on his feet he looked at Itachi in shock as he appeared in front of him, swinging his blade down upon his head. He managed to phase just in time for the blade to flow through him. Jumping back he fixed a glare on the young Uchiha.

"You dare betray me? You will regret this." The man's eyes widened when Itachi's eye morphed. Suddenly he was in the world of Tsukuyomi.

"You think you're clever boy? I'll be out of this in an instant." Madara said.

"I know that. I just wanted to let you know. If you come near my village. If you come near my brother or mother ever again, I will kill you. I know that you're not really Madara. I don't know who you are, but know this. I will kill you. Now run. Run and hide." Itachi said as the masked man growled at him. He disappeared without another word and Itachi was back in the real world again. Mikoto was coughing up blood from a stomach wound while Sasuke was shaking in fear next to her.

"Brother… who was that?" Sasuke asked.

"I don't know Sasuke. But whoever he is knows if he comes near you again, he will die." Itachi lied.

"I'll get revenge for our clan brother, I swear it!"

"No… not revenge. Justice. That man is evil. He is destruction incarnate. He is the cause for the Kyuubi attacking the village seven years ago. And you won't do it alone. Remember what I said, no one can shoulder all the responsibility themselves. We will all work together to defeat that man when the time comes." Itachi spoke with conviction. Anbu showed up seconds later asking what had happened. Mikoto explained the situation and they brought her to the hospital. Itachi, paranoid of losing the last of his family went to another man.

Itachi entered a secret bunker on the outskirts of the village. A man masked man in all black approached him with a hand up.

"You cannot be here Itachi Uchi-" A second later the man passed out after looking Itachi in the eye. This happened several more times as Itachi made his way through the bunker. As he entered the final chamber he saw an old man covered in bandages missing an arm with a cane.

"Itachi Uchiha. I take it you have finished taking care of your clan?" the man, Danzo, asked calmly.

"No. As I informed the Hokage the other day the situation was taking care of without bloodshed. Another man appeared and massacred my clan. I am here to inform you, if you so much as touch a hair on my mother or brother's head, I will personally kill you." Itachi spoke before turning and leaving. Danzo stared after him calmly, taking in his threat. He signaled one of his Root to come appear. The Root member kneeled before him.

"Call off the assassination of the remainder of the Uchiha. It's not worth the loss to our Shinobi to anger Itachi." Danzo spoke, anger evident in his voice.

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It was almost a year after the Uchiha Massacre. Itachi had been contemplating how to take care of all of the events of the future. He hadn't managed to stop the massacre of his clan, but he did stop his brother's decent to darkness. He looked at his calendar on the wall. October 10th. Curious. Why did that date seem familiar?

'Right, the day the Kyuubi attacked. There's a festival going on right now… wait. Why do I feel like I should be remembering something… Naruto!' The time traveling Uchiha thought. The Uchiha entered the living room of his home. Sasuke was sitting on the couch reading a book while his mother was cooking.

"Sasuke. Do you know a boy named Naruto Uzumaki?" Itachi asked. Sasuke looked confused.

"Yeah I know him. He's a pretty nice kid, not the best ninja though. He's the bottom of the class. Why?" Sasuke asked.

"Today is his birthday. I figured you don't have many friends, so why not pay him a visit? He's an orphan as I recall and doesn't have many friends himself." Itachi spoke hoping Sasuke would take the bait. One, he needed to protect Naruto and help him grow strong. Two, he needed to give Sasuke as many ties to the village as he could, in case he died before he could convince Sasuke to remain completely loyal.

"I guess. How do you know him Itachi?" Sasuke asked. His mother too was staring at him from the kitchen.

"One of my colleagues knows the boy well and speaks of him occasionally." Itachi lied expertly. Sasuke seemed to buy it and got dressed.

"Do you think he wants to go to the festival?" Sasuke asked hopefully.

"I doubt that, but if he decides to come with us, he might enjoy it." Itachi said with a small smile.

The two ventured through the festival when they heard a commotion close by. Itachi knew exactly what was going on and quickly approached it. Upon arriving the elder Uchiha saw a small, malnourished blonde boy being harassed by a crowd of drunks. Sasuke showed up right behind him and was shocked to see his classmate being harassed. That's when one of the drunks threw a bottle at him. In a second Itachi intercepted it, his sharingan eyes burning holes in the man who threw it, nearly making the man release his bowels.

Sasuke ran through the crowd and stood next to his brother in front of Naruto and shouted at the crowd.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? He's just a kid leave him alone!"

Naruto looked up at the two Uchiha in awe. The mob began to whisper amongst themselves.

"What do you Uchiha want with the demon brat?" One of the drunks asked.

"What do you mean demon brat?" Sasuke asked. He knew Naruto played pranks a lot but how was he a demon.

"You Uchiha should know, it's your fault he exists." Itachi's eyes narrowed at this. They were getting a bit too close to saying something they shouldn't.

"He's the fucking Kyuubi incarnate!" that was it, Itachi disappeared and snapped the man's neck.

"What the fuck?!" several of the crowd shouted. Sasuke and Naruto were in shock at what the man had said.

"The punishment for breaking the thirds law is death." Itachi spoke calmly though inside he felt anger boiling up. The crowd went silent, realizing the truth in his words.

"Anyone who speaks of this day again will be placed under arrest and receive proper trial. I recommend you dispersing. Now." Itachi said.

"Itachi… what did he mean by saying Naruto was the Kyuubi incarnate? And it was our fault for him existing?" Sasuke asked carefully. Naruto was still in shock.

"Both of you, come with me to the Hokage's office." Itachi said in a serious tone. The two nodded slowly and followed him. After arriving at the tower the three were granted audience with the Hokage.

"What brings you here today Itachi?" Hiruzen asked the Uchiha.

"Ask him Sasuke." Itachi spoke.

"Um... Hokage-sama… why did the villager call Naruto Kyuubi incarnate?" Sasuke asked, nervous in the presence of the most powerful ninja in the village. Hiruzen went silent as killing intent radiated off of him. Naruto and Sasuke were terrified naturally while Itachi's neutral expression remained.

"Yeah old man, why did he call me Kyuubi incarnate? I know that a lot of the villagers call me a demon brat but… am I really the Kyuubi?" Naruto asked. Hiruzen walked around his desk and got to eye level with Naruto.

"Don't listen to what that villager said. He was foolish and loose with his tongue. What I'm about to tell you is an S class secret. None of you are to speak of this with anyone, on threat of death. Understood?" the Hokage said with authority. The three boys in the room nodded.

"I didn't want you to find out until you were much older Naruto, but… the night the Yondaime fought the Kyuubi, it couldn't be killed. His only choice was to seal it into a newborn baby. That baby was you." Hiruzen spoke. Naruto began to breathe heavily and started to panic while Sasuke looked at him in shock.

"So I really am the Kyuubi?" Naruto asked as he panicked.

"No of course not. You are just its jailer." Hiruzen said looking the boy in the eyes. Sasuke tentatively placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Hey… Naruto… it's actually pretty cool. It's like you're a hero or something. You keep the demon from destroying the village. That's awesome!" Sasuke said shocking Naruto and making Hiruzen and Itachi smile.

"I'm… a hero? I'm a hero. I'm a hero! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted excited now. Sasuke sweat dropped at Naruto's sudden mood change.

"Hey, my names Naruto Uzumaki. You're Sasuke right? And who's that guy?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Yeah, my names Sasuke Uchiha, and that's my older brother Itachi Uchiha." Sasuke said proudly. Naruto looked sad for a second.

"What's it like to have a family?" Naruto asked. Sasuke went silent for a second.

"It's really nice. Family is just people you really love and care about. They don't have to be blood. Maybe we could be brother's one day!" Sasuke said with a grin. Naruto perked up at this.

"Really?!" Naruto asked excitedly. Itachi walked over to Naruto and put a hand on his shoulder.

"From now on, you have the protection of the Uchiha clan. We may not be very large anymore, but I swear we will protect you as if you were our own." Itachi said with conviction. Naruto smiled and looked up at Itachi then down to Sasuke.

"So I'm kind of like family now…?" Naruto asked. Itachi and Sasuke shared a look before smiling and nodding.

"Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted, making them all cringe.

"Sasuke, go to the lobby with Naruto. I need to talk to Hokage-sama about something." Itachi said. The boys nodded and left the room. Hiruzen moved back to his desk and looked at Itachi expectantly.

"What do you wish to speak to me about Itachi?" Hiruzen asked already having an idea where this was going.

"I have no intention of becoming a jonin sensei, so know that before I tell you this. I would like it if you put Sasuke and Naruto on the same team, no matter their grades in school. I fully intend for Naruto to live with us, and I will be training them. The man I fought. The one who massacred my clan, caught him in a genjutsu and he told me that he is leading a group called Akatsuki, and that they are after the Jinchuriki. Also, he claimed to be responsible for the Yondaime's and Kushina Uzumaki's deaths." Itachi lied yet again. Hiruzen got a dark look on his face.

"This is troubling news indeed. Very well, I will put them on a team together when the time comes. I expect you to prepare them thoroughly." Hiruzen said. Itachi kneeled and bowed his head.

"Understood Hokage-sama." It felt good to be saying that again.

"You may leave now. Oh, and thank you for reminding Danzo of his place." Hiruzen said with a wry smile. Itachi wasn't surprised the old war hawk complained to the Hokage.

"Thank you Hokage-sama." And with that Itachi met up with the two boys outside in the lobby.

"Let's go." Itachi said. It felt good not being hunted and hated. He would make the most of this second chance. This was round two, and he wouldn't fail this time. After all, he wasn't fighting alone again.

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Authors Note: So my last story was kind of a bomb. I realized that I suck at making balanced oc's. I will attempt to keep righting it, and fix the mess I made, but this was just an idea I wanted to experiment with. This one will contain no original characters except minor cannon fodder. Hopefully my writing skills will carry me through this story better than the last one. Read and Review viewers.


	2. Chapter 2

Itachi Uchiha: Turning Back the Pendulum

Chapter 2

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It had been five years since Naruto had moved into the Uchiha household. Mikoto had been hesitant but upon hearing about Naruto's lifestyle she began to feel guilty and allowed him to stay. From the first day Naruto moved in, Itachi had trained them into the ground.

Ruthless condition, hours of meditation, jutsu practice, strategizing, taijutsu practice and so on. The boys hated it at first but upon seeing the results only a week later they dived into training with fervor. After a year the two were the top of their class. Naruto was still an idiot, and Sasuke was a little arrogant, but Itachi had been slowly beating that out of them. They each now had above average tactics, above average taijutsu, and above average stamina. They both had a repertoire of jutsu, and each had their own style of fighting. Sasuke's relied on his recently developed sharingan, and Naruto's relied on speed and unpredictability. Both were bizarrely fast and Naruto had unrealistic chakra reserves and endurance whilst Sasuke had an exceptional mind. Together they were destructive. Not anywhere near Itachi's level, but still pretty damn good for academy students by Itachi's standards. They were a little depressed that they still couldn't even land a glancing blow on Itachi, but hey, taking on the soon to be Godaime Hokage was not an easy task.

Speaking of which, Hiruzen had come up to Itachi a month ago and said he would like Itachi to take over his hat in a year's time. He said that Itachi's wisdom rivaled his own, and his strength surpassed his own. Itachi had been hesitant to take the hat, but felt he owed it to the Uchiha clan to help them finally regain their honor. He accepted on the condition that Hiruzen being willing to be a proxy when needed. The Sandaime accepted, understanding what Itachi intended to do.

"Brother, I graduated as rookie of the year!" Sasuke shouted as he entered his house. Naruto came bustling in after him.

"Hey! Co-rookie of the year teme!"

"Shut up dobe. You were the dead last once." Naruto feigned being hurt before the two laughed. Over the years they had become increasing close, something Itachi was happy to note.

"Good job, both of you. When do you find out you're teams?" Itachi asked, already knowing the answer.

"Tomorrow! I better be on teme's team dattebayo!" Naruto shouted. Sasuke sweat dropped at his friend's verbal tic.

"Are you ever gonna stop saying that?"

"Nope dattebayo dattebayo dattebayo!" Naruto shouted trying to annoy Sasuke. As the two bickered Itachi chuckled and took a sip of his tea.

"So which graduate thinks they can get me pocky faster?" Itachi said, hoping their competitive nature would get him his sweets.

"Get off your lazy ass and get it yourself Itachi." Naruto said.

"Yeah, you can get your own pocky." Sasuke chimed in. Itachi sighed. The two had a habit of ganging up on him lately, especially now that they had a competition over who would hit Itachi first in a spar. Itachi looked up at the now bickering genin and smiled. That's one less failure on his part. He still couldn't save his clan, but he had saved his mother, brother, and Naruto. Speaking of his mother, she had been doing quite well lately, picking up her training. She was easily high jonin level now. She had returned to active duty a year ago and had an excellent mission record. Things were looking brighter now. Hopefully this foreboding feeling Itachi had meant nothing.

The next day Naruto and Sasuke were at the academy sitting next to each other. Several girls were hovering around Sasuke trying to get his attention. Unfortunately this only seemed to get his ire while Naruto was laughing. Naruto suddenly got a horribly funny idea in his head to embarrass Sasuke.

"Girls, he won't go out with you, he's got too big a crush on Shikamaru." Sasuke and Shikamaru blanched at this while all the girls gasped in shock.

"Asshole! I'd rather date Sakura then Shikamaru. I'm not fucking gay!" Sasuke shouted indignantly. This however caused a certain pink haired girl to squeak. Realizing what he had just said Sasuke began banging his head on a desk.

"Wow Sasuke didn't know you liked Sakura so much. I never would have guessed haha." Naruto laughed. Sasuke gave him a death glare for that comment.

"Shut up. At least I'm not too dimwitted to realize when someone likes me." Sasuke muttered.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Naruto asked confused.

"Considering you're supposed to be as good as me, you're really, really stupid." Sasuke said as he finished banging his head on the desk, a nice red mark marring his skin.

"Everyone sit down. I will now be announcing teams." Iruka said. Mizuki was mysteriously missing.

"Alright team one… team seven, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno," Naruto and Sasuke began praying, "and Sasuke Uchiha. Your sensei is Kakashi Hatake."

"Yes!" Three voices shouted as the entire team stood up. They all looked at each other while the rest of the class stared at them. Naruto laughed awkwardly while sitting down, Sasuke sat down immediately, and Sakura blushed bright red while sitting down.

"Eh hem. Moving on. Team eight. Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyuga, and Shino Aburame. Your sensei is Kurenai Yuhi. Team nine… team ten, Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Chouji Akimichi. Your sensei is Asuma Sarutobi. Now wait here for your sensei to arrive." Iruka said as he left the room. All of the teams began talking amongst themselves while waiting for their sensei.

"Hey Sakura, come over here." Sasuke said. The girl blushed before sitting next to him and Naruto.

"Yes Sasuke-kun?" the girl said shyly.

"No need to be so shy, we are a team now, so we should get to know each other." Sasuke said with a slight smile.

"Actually Sasuke just wants to get to know you." Naruto chimed in. Sasuke punched Naruto in the back of the head.

"Shut up dobe!" He said a slight blush marring his face. Sakura was bright red at this point.

"Ouch! I'm Naruto Uzumaki by the way, future Hokage! Dattebayo!" Naruto said.

"Idiot." Sasuke said. Sakura watched the two rookies of the year bicker back and forth and began to laugh.

"What's so funny?!" they both shouted at her. She blushed for a second embarrassed.

"Well it's kinda funny seeing the two best in the class fighting like little kids." She giggled. The two looked at each other, then sweat dropped.

"Do we really look like kids…?"

"That's so not cool Sakura…"

"I'm gonna like this team." Sakura laughed, a little more at ease now. They looked around and realized they were the only team left. Little did they know that they had an entire hour left before their eternally late sensei would show up.

Finally their sensei entered the room.

"Hmm two supposed prodigies and the top kunoichi in the class. You all might be a little interesting. Follow me to the roof." Kakashi said as the group sighed in relief that they didn't need to sit there anymore.

After arriving on the roof Kakashi had them all sit down.

"Judging by how you were all talking, I assume you've introduced yourselves to each other. I'd still like to know a bit about you though. My name is Kakashi Hatake. I like gardening and reading. I dislike people who judge me for reading in public. My hobby is reading. My dream for the future. Read another book. Your turn." Kakashi said causing the genin to sweat drop.

'This guy's weird.' All of the genin collectively thought.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki! I like ramen and training with teme and Itachi. I dislike people who judge others for no reason. My hobbies are gardening and training. And my dream for the future is to be the strongest Hokage ever! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted. Kakashi smiled at this. He was a lot like his mother.

"I'm Sasuke Uchiha. I like the dobe and my brother Itachi, sushi, and training. I dislike people who hurt the ones I care about. My hobby is to train. My dream for the future… bring justice to the man who murdered my clan." Sasuke said confidently at the end. Kakashi nodded, noting that he said bring justice, not get revenge.

"I'm Sakura Haruno. I like my new teammates. I dislike feeling useless. My hobby is to read. My dream for the future is to be a strong kunoichi." She said smiling. Kakashi was very proud of them. They all seemed to get along and had good habits and goals.

"I'm starting to like you guys. Alright, meet me at training ground seven tomorrow for a survival exam. This will determine if you really become a genin or not. I kind of don't want you to fail, so eat a light breakfast tomorrow and come prepared. Have a nice day now kids." Kakashi said with an eye smile before disappearing in a puff of smoke. Sasuke and Naruto weren't surprised about the exam as Itachi had warned them ahead of time, and they warned Sakura while they were waiting for Kakashi.

"Before we all go home, let's make a plan for tomorrow. We are probably going to need to work together tomorrow, so we have to be prepared for anything. Ready?" Sasuke asked. His teammates nodded and they all went to Naruto's favorite place, Ichiraku Ramen to discuss their plan.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"You've brought them up well Itachi."

"They need to be ready for this world. I don't want to lose anymore loved ones."

"Noble of you. You won't have much time to train them anymore after you become Hokage. Don't worry though, I'll make them as strong as I can."

"Thank you Kakashi. That's all I can ask of you." The two men were sitting in a Shinobi bar, relaxing and making small talk.

"Hey Kakashi, Itachi, you mind if we join you?" Asuma said with Kurenai in tow. Anko, Genma, Hayate, and Yugao sat with them too. It had been five years and Itachi still couldn't get over how things had changed. For the first time in years, he felt happy. Then the guilt of literally destroying the future sank in again. He truly deserved to die for what he did. It was an abomination. But he needed to save everyone. He took the burden on his shoulders once, so he decided to take it again. He was growing weak though. He hadn't needed to use the Mangekyou during any missions in the last five years, but he was developing the same disease he had before. He was trying to hide it from everyone, knowing it was nigh incurable.

He suddenly entered a coughing fit while everyone was talking and excused himself to the bathroom, cursing his luck. Everyone stared after him in worry and Kakashi followed him to make sure he was okay. Upon entering the bathroom Kakashi heard the sound of vomiting.

"Itachi… you okay?" Kakashi asked as he approached the stall. The sounds stopped and the toilet flushed. Itachi walked out looking disorientated.

"I'm fine."

"Is that blood on your shirt? Where you just throwing up blood?! We need to get you to a hospital!" Kakashi said worried. Itachi brushed his hand off and glared at him.

"I said I'm fine. Leave it at that." Itachi said before leaving the bathroom. Kakashi looked at his retreating form with a hint of concern. Accepting that Itachi knew what he was doing, he was silent when he returned to the table.

"You okay Itachi?" Anko asked.

"Fine. Just a little cold." Itachi replied coolly.

"So all it takes to beat the big bad Uchiha is a little cold, huh?" Anko teased. Kakashi tensed slightly, unnoticed by anyone else. Itachi just laughed and agreed. Kakashi just sighed and hoped his friend didn't die.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was the next day and team seven had been waiting at the training grounds for three hours. Instead of wasting time, Sasuke and Naruto began a light spar while Sakura watched in awe at their speed and strength. They were holding back in case Kakashi was watching. Itachi warned them that he was always three hours late, and he would most likely be testing them by fighting him. Finally Kakashi showed up and smiled at the three.

"Impressive, you've used your time wisely. Let's begin." He placed an alarm clock on the stump behind him.

"You have until twelve o'clock to get one of these bells off of me. Those who get a bell pass. Those who don't well..." Kakashi trailed off.

"But sensei, there's only two bells." Sakura while Sasuke and Naruto shared a look. This was a trap.

"Exactly. Only two of you will pass." Kakashi said.

"Come at me with intent to kill."

"What if we hurt you?" Sakura asked.

"You won't." He laughed.

"Begin!" the instant he said that Sakura peppered him with kunai and shuriken while Sasuke and Naruto charged from opposite sides at high speeds.

'Impressive, working in tandem already.' Kakashi weaved in and out of the shuriken and blocked the identical kicks on either side of him, and was shocked by the strength of the kicks.

'Itachi really must have put them through the ringer.' He thought.

"I guess I won't be reading with you guys." He said as the two boys backed off and Sakura disappeared into the foliage.

'They know not to stay in close combat with a jonin for long, and the support knows how to disappear. My, my, what a bunch I have here. They've already worked together, so they pass. But I want to see how far they will go.' Kakashi thought. He was surprised by the hand seals Naruto and Sasuke were using. He found himself dodging a giant fireball as several shadow clones flanked him. Out of his peripheral vision he say a kunai coming at his blind spot. He dodge it expertly and put down all of the clones when he was again locked in a taijutsu battle with the two boys. One was unpredictable and fast. The other seemed to read his movements.

'So he has the sharingan already. They continue to impress.' Kakashi thought, happy with his soon to be team. As they continued to fight he began to notice how their styles complemented each other's. Naruto would confuse the opponent while Sasuke would take in their style, and they would switch once he had a grasp for it. When the opponent adjusted they switched roles again and the cycle continued. Granted they were no match for Kakashi, who was no ordinary jonin. Suddenly the two boys smirked as the both delivered heavy kicks on each side. He blocked both kicks, curious as to the sudden attack. In that one moment that his arms were busy he suddenly felt a presence behind him. He glanced back and saw Sakura charge with a kunai. She almost stabbed him in the back but he dodged just in time.

"Clever, but not clever enough kids." Kakashi said. That's when he heard a jingle. Looking down he saw the bells missing and the three genin standing in front of him with huge grins on their faces.

"Very, very impressive. How did you all coordinate that so well?" Kakashi asked, impressed.

"Ha ha we all had plenty of time to plan yesterday and this morning. Shouldn't have been so late Cyclops dattebayo!"

"Yeah, if you had been more prepared we wouldn't have been able to get a plan together."

"Come on Kakashi-sensei, what kind of jonin is late all the time?" the trio said. Kakashi sweat dropped at how little respect they had for him.

"Gee thanks. Well you all pass, congratulations! I guess as a reward I'll take you all out to lunch." The three new genin smiled at this.

"Yatta!" Naruto shouted as the team walked off to get lunch.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was night and Itachi was at the memorial stone. He looked at the names of all of the Uchiha who feel that night. Clenching his fist he cursed himself and the fake Madara. It was his fault for not preparing better. For not remembering.

"I am sorry father. All of you. I should have been able to protect you all. But I swear, I will defend mother and Sasuke. I'm going to be Godaime. I told you we could bring honor back to the clan father."

"I thought I was the only one who still talked to the memorial stone." Kakashi said from behind him.

"What are you doing here Kakashi?"

"Paying my respects to my former team. I'm assuming you're doing the same for your family."

"… Yeah. I could have done something. I could have saved my father at least. But I froze. I never freeze. And I will never freeze again, not when someone I care about has their life on the line." Itachi said showing anger for the first time since that night. Kakashi was silent as he walked next to the Uchiha and stared at the stone. They both stood there for another hour before parting ways without a word.

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"Alright team, do you know anything about chakra control?" Kakashi asked.

"Yeah, Itachi taught us up to water walking." Sasuke said.

"What's water walking?" Sakura asked.

"I'll show you!" Naruto said as he walked over to the river and stood on it. Sakura looked at him in awe.

"That's amazing! How do you do that?" Sakura asked, her curiosity running rampant.

"That's an advanced chakra control exercise. What you do is focus chakra into your feet to float on top of the water. You have to constantly change the flow of chakra to maintain it." Kakashi instructed.

"You can give it a shot, but I don't think you'll get it without the tree walking exercise first." Kakashi said. Sakura took this as a challenge and did as she was told. She bobbed for a moment but got the technique down in moments. The entire team gawked at her.

"That's… faster than even I got the exercise down. And I graduated at five years old…" Kakashi said a little jealous.

'These kids are going to be monsters when they get older. I may be raising the next coming of the Sannin.' Thought Kakashi, proud of his students.

"Well that was all I really had planned today. Conditioning it is then!" Kakashi said with a cheerful smile on his face. A few hours later, the three genin were on the ground in agony.

"He's… gasp… worse… gasp… then Itachi!" Naruto managed to breathe out. Sasuke just grunted while Sakura curled up into a ball. Off to the side Kakashi was still doing the intensive training himself.

"What's wrong? Tired already?" Kakashi said as he did one armed push-ups while doing a handstand.

"Why are you training sensei? Aren't you already strong enough?" Naruto asked, having caught his breath already.

"You can never train enough, and you should never stop trying to improve yourself. That's what my sensei taught me. He was Hokage after all." Kakashi bragged. Naruto perked up at this.

"The Yondaime was your sensei?! No wonder you're so strong sensei! I have a badass sensei dattebayo!" Naruto shouted. Sasuke managed to sit up while Sakura was still lying on the ground.

"Well you all seem tired, so let's call it a night." Kakashi said, dismissing his students.

"Thank god…" Sakura groaned as Sasuke helped her up.

As night came Itachi was training in the forest. He was sprinting at full speed while wearing weights and throwing kunai at targets he had hidden throughout the forest. He got a perfect shot on each one and managed to maintain speed. When he stopped he took a deep breath. Suddenly a coughing fit hit and he started vomiting blood again.

"That's not good." He said as he finished vomiting. He stumbled his way back to the village and straightened himself once he saw the villagers. Itachi was respected as the strongest ninja in the village, respect that rang through all the ranks. If they saw him sick and slowly dying, morale would drop. All he could hope is that he managed to finish off the Akatsuki before dying. He was already stronger than he was in the previous timeline. That was good, because he was already one of the strongest of the Akatsuki at the time.

As he entered his house he noticed it was oddly quiet. No one was home. Wonderful. Collapsing in his bed he attempted to sleep. Suddenly he sensed something off. Someone was in the compound. And it wasn't friendly. Forcing himself out of bed he made his way through the compound. Once he felt the presence was close he hid himself. Peaking around the corner he saw it wasn't one presence. Sneaking through his compound was several ninja with a musical note for a headband. They had a bag in their hands. A body sized bag. Itachi disappeared and reappeared among them. There was five of them. They barely had time to register his appearance as two of them had their throats slit. The next two, directly behind him, had kunai jabbed into their skulls. The last one dropped the bag and attempted to run. Itachi was in front of him in a second and with one word sealed the man's fate.

"Tsukuyomi." Suddenly the two were in Itachi's world.

"I assume Orochimaru sent you. What is he after?" Itachi asked.

"Fuck you Uchiha, I'm not telling you shit."

"Wrong answer." He ripped the man's eyes out, causing him to scream in agony.

"Still don't feel like talking?" Itachi asked in a monotone.

"Fuck… you…" the many gasped out. This time Itachi was silent as he ripped the man's finger nails off.

"Argh!" The man shouted in agony. Itachi then started pulling his teeth out, one at a time. Another scream. He snapped each joint in the man's hand. Another scream. He started cutting fingers off, piece by piece. More screams and sobbing. Kunai in the crotch. Broken sobbing. Finally the man was stabbed in the lungs and began to drown. As the man died his eyes flashed open.

"You will be in here for a total of seventy two hours. Only seventy one hours, fifty nine minutes and fifty nine seconds left. Do you wish to talk now?"

"He wants the sharingan! No more… please no more…" the man sobbed.

"Who does he want?"

"He wants you. He knows you're too strong though. So he intends to take your mother or brother."

"Where is he?"

"I don't know." Snap.

"I swear I don't know!"

"You're lying." Snap.

"Argh! Okay he's currently in a base in Kusa!"

"You're lying again." Snap. Snap. Snap.

"Ugh all I know is he is wandering from base to base. He wears a cloak with red clouds on it and works with a man named Sasori!" Shock went through Itachi's system. He hadn't thought about the adverse effects of him leaving Akatsuki. Orochimaru was still there. Meaning Deidara probably wasn't. This was disturbing, not knowing what he was up against anymore.

Of course he still had Shisui's eye. It could be useful in dealing with the Akatsuki. Perhaps he could turn one of them to his side. Could he take away someone's free will like that? The thought disgusted him. The fact that he had killed as much as he did, fought as much as he did, killed him inside. He believed in peace, not killing and violence. Remembering his morals Itachi wiped the man's mind of any knowledge of meeting with Itachi in the Tsukuyomi and knocked him out. He sent a clone to find Anbu to apprehend the unconscious man. He then cut the bag open finding his unconscious and most likely drugged mother. She was otherwise unharmed. Good.

"I swore I would protect you. If it means taking on the entire Akatsuki then so be it. Even if it costs me my life, I will protect my family. My village. The world." Itachi said before reminding himself that he couldn't shoulder the burden himself.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"I heard some enemy ninja tried raiding your home last night Itachi. They said you beat them all without getting a single injury. How fucking strong are you?" Anko asked as the group sat at the bar again.

"Not very. Just strong enough." Itachi responded.

"There goes that humble personality of yours. Where do you get it anyway? I figured someone as strong as you would want to brag a bit." Genma said intrigued.

"Arrogance is the downfall of many great ninja. I understand my own capabilities and their limits. I am powerful. But not infallible. Everyone has a weakness. Everyone." Itachi said. Anko got a smirk on her face.

"Really now? What are ours?" Now everyone was curious.

"Are you sure you all really want to know? I might offend some of you." Everyone got a little nervous at this before nodding.

"Kakashi you are well rounded but you're sharingan constantly drains you're chakra. It leaves you at a constant disadvantage. Asuma you have no ability for genjutsu whatsoever. Genma you're taijutsu is poor. Hayate you rely on kenjutsu too much. Kurenai you have practically no physical strength. Anko if you use too much chakra you're curse seal acts up. Yugao, same with Hayate, too reliant on kenjutsu." This left all of his fellow jonin gawking as he took a sip of his tea.

"How the fuck did you figure that out?" Anko blurted out.

"I study my allies and enemies alike. It's good to be prepared for fights." Itachi said in a monotone.

"What's your weakness Itachi?" Anko asked.

"… I try and shoulder burdens by myself. I take on everything alone. It will get me killed one day." Everyone went silent and looked down, knowing this to be true. He was the strongest of them all after all.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

'Naruto… Naruto… Naruto!' a loud voice roared through Naruto's head awakening him.

"Who's there?!" Naruto shouted ready to fight.

'In your head dumbass.' The voice bellowed.

'Who are you?' Naruto asked.

'My name is Kurama. I am the Kyuubi.' Kurama spoke.

'What?! How are you talking to me?! You have a name?!' Naruto thought loudly.

'Of course I have a name brat. And the seal finally loosened enough that I can speak to you. Go wake up the older Uchiha.'

'Why?'

'Because I need to speak to him. Now. Go brat.' Kurama said threateningly. Naruto was torn but decided Itachi would know what to do. He walked into his room and called his name. Itachi was up in a second and fully awake.

"What is it Naruto?" Itachi asked.

"I don't know how to say this nicely so I'll be blunt. The Kyuubi wants to talk to you…" Naruto said nervously. Now the Uchiha was worried. Getting out of bed he walked over to Naruto and made eye contact.

"Hold still Naruto." Itachi said before using the sharingan to enter Naruto's mind. Itachi found himself in a dank sewer in front of a large gate. Inside the Kyuubi stared at him.

"You insolent little brat! All of you Uchiha think you can do whatever you want?! How dare you use the Koshin?! How do you even know of its existence?!" the Kyuubi roared, leaking killing intent. Itachi stared wide eyed at the beast.

"How… how do you know I used it?" Itachi asked. Naruto was staring between the two confused.

"Itachi, what's Koshin?"

"Be quiet Naruto." Itachi said, anxiety running through his veins.

"I am part of the Juubi fool. I was the son of the sage. You think that jutsu would destroy my mind?" The Kyuubi seemed to brag.

"So you remember what happened. Then you understand why I had to do what I did." Itachi spoke. The Kyuubi was silent for a few minutes.

"Yes. I still don't like you using the thing my father even found to despicable to use to rewrite reality."

"Okay we are in my head, so someone better tell me what's going on!" Naruto shouted. Itachi sighed.

"I never wanted anyone to find out. Kyuubi. Is there any way you could restore his memories?" Itachi asked.

"I could. Are you certain it's a good idea for him to know the entire future?" Kurama asked.

"Yes. He deserves to know. This all directly involves him."

"Very well. Naruto prepare yourself and don't jump do anything rash." Kurama said. His chakra began to envelop Naruto. Naruto looked terrified before his eyes went blank. Thousands of memories passed through his mind in a matter of seconds.

"Was I really that much of an idiot?" Naruto asked. The Kyuubi laughed and Itachi let out a sigh of relief.

"Yeah you were Naruto. Good to have the old you back again."

"It's good to see you Kurama. Itachi, you're lucky I knew the truth before you did whatever you did. By the way it fucking hurt dattebayo!" Naruto shouted irritated.

"Naruto… do you know who the masked man is?" Naruto thought for a second, trying to sift through his new memories.

"I think his name was Tobi… no that was his fake name... Obito!" That name chilled Itachi to the very core. He only knew one Obito with a sharingan.

"That's very… disturbing." Itachi said as he got over his shock.

"Naruto, you are to tell no one of this, no matter the circumstances. Understood?" Itachi ordered. Naruto tensed for a second.

"Yeah Itachi. I got it. If I told Sasuke… he might go insane again." Naruto said worried about how his friend had turned out the first time.

"Good. Now let's all get some sleep." And with that the two were back in reality and off to bed.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Several D rank missions later the Hokage summoned Kakashi's team.

"Kakashi, your team is quite exceptional. Recently Kurenai's team received a C rank mission to wave. It has gone haywire. We are sending your team in as back up. Itachi is already there, but he requested that your team back him up. I expect you to depart immediately."

"Yes Hokage-sama." And with that the team departed.

Several days later the team arrived in wave at the man, Tazuna's, house. Upon entering they were shocked to see and injured Itachi tending to a near dead Kurenai.

"Good you're here. There seems to be a problem. There are two missing ninja here. One S rank, one A rank. I managed to arrive just in time to save Kurenai and her students, but she is in no fighting condition. I am going to need your team to support team eight in protecting Tazuna while you and I deal with the missing ninja.

"I'm afraid to ask, but who are the ninja?"

"Zabuza Momochi and Orochimaru." The room went silent at that.

"Shouldn't you have called in more support than my genin team?" Kakashi asked angered.

"I myself am capable of dealing with both of them. However I can't protect the bridge builder, Kurenai, her team, and fight them both and an army of bandits. I know my limits." Itachi spoke calmly. Kakashi held his glare a moment longer.

"I see you're point. Very well, where is team eight?"

"Unconscious upstairs. Their injuries aren't as severe but they are suffering from chakra depletion."

"Orders?" Kakashi asked, knowing that currently Itachi was the superior officer.

"You and you're team are to stay with Tazuna and Kurenai at all times until the threat is taken care of. Tazuna you are currently under house arrest. And before you complain you're lucky you're alive, you lied about this mission, putting our ninja's lives at risk." Tazuna shut up at that. Inari however didn't take the hint.

"You're all just gonna die. It's useless to fight." Naruto fixed a glare on the kid

"Hey brat, you're looking at two future Hokage's the next coming of the Sannin, and one of Konoha's elite here. The bad guys don't stand a chance dattebayo. Just think about it this way. If we weren't here, and someone tried killing someone close to you would you really just sit back and accept it? Hell no! You'd fight against the odds and fate and all that shit. So don't whine brat. Stand tall. Stand proud. You're grandpa is brave enough to not give up, so you should be brave enough too dattebayo!" Naruto lectured. His speech seemed rousing as everyone perked up at it. Even Kurenai had sat up at hearing it. Inari stared at the ground silent.

"Kill Gato and I might believe you." Inari said, thinking over the blondes words.

"Nice speech dobe. Didn't know you had it in you."

"Yeah Naruto. You really would make a good leader." Sakura said.

"I'm proud of how you've grown up Naruto. I look forward to the day I call you my leader." Kakashi said with an eye smile. Itachi even smiled as he stood up.

"If you'll excuse me, I have some snake hunting." Itachi said. With that Itachi was out the door. Sasuke and Naruto looked worried, hoping that it wouldn't be their last time seeing him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Orochimaru."

"Itachi Uchiha. What a pleasure to see you again. How would you like to become my next body?" Orochimaru said sadistically. Zabuza pulled out his blade as he leveled a glare on the powerful Uchiha.

"Let's just kill him already so we can get our pa-"

"Tsukuyomi!" In a second Zabuza was unconscious on the ground. Haku attempted to attack Itachi but he was too slow.

"Amaterasu!" Haku and Zabuza were lit ablaze with black flames, killing them instantly.

"Are you sure you think you can take my body." Itachi said as blood poured down his face. For the first time in a long time, Orochimaru felt genuine fear as the powerful Uchiha glared at him. Suddenly a gleeful smile appeared on his face.

"Let's play!" Orochimaru charged.

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Author's note: I am in firm belief that Itachi is without a doubt one of the, if not the strongest character living in the series. It is outright said he is a pacifist so he doesn't even try to hurt people. He defeated Orochimaru in a second. He nearly killed Sasuke without trying while blind and sick. And he only lost because he wanted to. Obito outright told Sasuke that if Itachi wanted to win, he would be dead. He one shot an immortal Nagato and saw through his technique, and freed himself from the Edo Tensei, and then ended the Edo Tensei. So that's why I'm making Itachi so strong right now. Don't worry he won't one shot all the bad guys, he is sick still, going blind, and again, isn't infallible. Read and review.


	3. Chapter 3

Itachi Uchiha: Turning Back the Pendulum

Chapter 3

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"Amaterasu!" Itachi shouted as Orochimaru charged. The snake barely dodged the black flames before shooting Kusanagi at Itachi, who expertly dodged.

"Give me your body Itachi! It will hurt less if you give in willingly!" the Sannin shouted as they engaged in a taijutsu battle where they were evenly matched. They broke apart and went through hand seals at a blinding pace. Orochimaru spat out a mud dragon while Itachi shot a giant dragon's head at the snake Sannin. The jutsus clashed, though nether overpowered the other, merely leaving molten earth in its wake. The two Kage level ninja stared each other down. Suddenly Orochimaru noticed a tree wrapping around him, which Itachi began melding out of.

"Kai!" Orochimaru shouted barely dodging Itachi's swipe at his throat.

"I had heard you were an expert at genjutsu but to think you almost killed me because of it… kukuku. Edo Tensei!" Orochimaru shouted summoning up a coffin. Itachi's eyes widened as he attempted to stop it, but he wasn't fast enough. Out of the coffin stepped a single man.

Fugaku Uchiha.

"Itachi… it's good to see you again. You're much older. Have you gotten stronger?" Fugaku asked his son. Itachi went silent and began to shake with rage.

"Are you prepared to fight your own fa- What the fuck is that?!" Orochimaru yelled as Susanoo appeared around the enraged Uchiha. In a second the sword of Totsuka pierced Fugaku, sealing him up, narrowly missing the snake Sannin as he barely dodged.

"You… you made the wrong move there snake. First you try and take my mother. Now you dare make me fight my father? I will end you here and now." Susanoo disappeared as Itachi seemingly vanished. Suddenly he appeared in front of Orochimaru, his first buried in the snake's gut. The Sannin shed his skin and attempted to bite the Uchiha on the throat. Itachi ducked under and, slamming the heel of his foot into the Sannin's stomach in the same motion. The Sannin righted himself mid-air and shot Kusanagi at Itachi again, narrowly dodging the blade the Uchiha charged forward. However what he didn't know was Orochimaru's ability to control the blade mentally, and he didn't dodge the sword in time as it pierced his lung.

"It seems you aren't as strong as they say Itachi." The Sannin cackled. As he prepared to finish the dying Uchiha off, the sound of chirping birds filled the air and Kakashi appeared above the Sannin, intent on running him through with his Raikiri. He succeeded, but the Sannin shed his skin yet again.

"Two S rank ninja against one? That's not very fair now is it? I guess I'll be taking my leave now. Hopefully Itachi lives. I would like his body…" the snake said before melting into the ground, revealing he had replaced with a mud clone at some point. The Kusanagi disappeared as well as Itachi began coughing up blood.

'I can't die here. I need to finish this… I can't die yet...' Itachi thought as his world began to fade. He vaguely heard Kakashi yelling something as his eyes closed. At least he had saved Sasuke from the darkness. That's all he could hope for.

Suddenly his eyes snapped open as his body convulsed in agony.

"Argh!" Itachi roared as his veins felt like they were on fire he recognized this feeling. It was demonic chakra. And it was healing him. The pain was agonizing though and he thought me might just die from that. Suddenly it stopped. He could breathe again. Better than he had in years. Had the chakra healed his disease as well? Suddenly the feeling came back and he started coughing up blood violently.

"Brother/Itachi!" Several voices chorused. He vaguely realized where he was. Tazuna's house.

"You're alive. Thank god." Sasuke let out the breath he had be holding. Itachi stopped his coughing fit and got up.

"Lie down. Now." Kakashi ordered. Team seven and team eight were surrounding him, all of which were curious about the chakra Naruto had used to save him.

"No." Itachi said in his monotone as he forced himself up. Kakashi pushed him down roughly.

"That wasn't a request." The man said with a glare, his hardened days as an expert Anbu kicking in. Itachi fixed a glare on him.

"You're sick. You know you are. Explain." Kakashi ordered.

"… I have an incurable disease that is slowly destroying my body. In about five years I will be dead from it. I explained. Now let me up." Itachi replied. Everyone stared at him in shock and worry.

"Brother… when were you planning on telling me?! You were just gonna let yourself die without telling anyone? Fuck, why do you take everything on yourself? Why can't you let someone else help you for once? Weren't you the one who said that no one can do it alone? Weren't you the one that said arrogance is the downfall of all great ninja? What happened to that?!" Sasuke blew up on the man. Itachi met his gaze.

"I have a mission. I need to kill a group called the Akatsuki. Orochimaru is one of the Akatsuki. He is after you and they are all after Naruto. None of you are strong enough to combat them yet and I want to make it so you never have to fight them. I'm already guaranteed to die soon. Let me lay down my life. None of you need to lose yours." Itachi replied. He stood up bodily pushing them all out of the way.

"Where are you going?" Kurenai asked.

"To kill Gato."

"He has over a thousand bandits. Do you really expect to kill them all by yourself?" Kakashi spoke. Itachi froze. After a moment of thinking he made a decision.

"Team seven, team eight. Take Tazuna to the bridge. I will leave a clone here to protect the house. Get the bandits attention. I'll take care of Gato." The two teams nodded, happy that he would finally accept help.

"Yes captain." They all chorused before following through with his orders.

On the bridge over five hundred bandits stood on the bridge. Among them were three missing ninja of which no one took note. They were weak. The sound of a thousand birds crackled in the air as Kakashi summoned the lighting blade. Naruto spawned fifty clones. Sasuke activated his sharingan. Kurenai placed a genjutsu over the bandits. Kiba and Akamaru activated their beast clone jutsu. Shino spread out his bugs. Hinata nervously stepped into the Juken stance, hoping that she wouldn't embarrass herself in front of Naruto. Finally Sakura gathered her chakra, preparing to heal any injured and guarding Tazuna from any stray attacks. And so the massacre began. The bandits stood no chance as the ninja mowed through them. As the last one fell the ninja panted from exertion. Even if they couldn't put up a true fight, it was tiring fighting over five hundred enemies.

"That was only five hundred… Itachi!" Sasuke shouted in realization.

Speaking of Itachi, he was currently sneaking through Gato's mansion placing exploding tags on the wall. Avoiding all enemy ninja and bandits. After assessing the Gato was asleep Itachi snuck into his room. He looked down at the man, and froze, having flashbacks to the war when he was a child. Snapping himself out of it, he knew what must be done. He slit the man's throat in a second, clenching his eyes shut as the man gurgled on his own blood. Itachi felt sick doing it. He broke into Gato's safe, sealing up all of his money, gold, jewelry, and other valuables. He exited the building through the window and once a suitable distance way set off the tags creating a huge explosion, engulfing the entire building in flames.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Team seven, team eight, and Itachi were on their way back to the village. The bridge had been named after Naruto, for giving hope to Inari and in turn the entire country that they could stand up on their own two feet.

"And then I executed Gato and collected all of his funds." Itachi said handing the Hokage a scroll.

"Impressive Itachi. I am a little concerned that you confronted Zabuza and Orochimaru on your own, however with how you easily dispatched of the former I must say you were able to handle yourself just fine." The Hokage said. Itachi had been careful to omit any detail that related to his disease. No need for the Hokage to know that and take him out of active duty now.

"Thank you Hokage-sama." The Uchiha spoke, giving a slight bow. After being dismissed he entered his favorite bar and sat went to sit with his usual crowd, only to find them all glaring at him.

"Yes?" Itachi asked slowly.

"First you try and solo a fucking Sannin, not to mention it's fucking Orochimaru, and then you go and almost die because of your stupidity? Fucking asshole, what do you think the village would have done without you?" Anko shouted at him. Itachi just blankly stared at her.

"Are you finished?" Itachi said in his usual monotone.

"No, no I'm not. How do you think we would have fucking felt? You're our friend, and you keep putting your fucking life on the line alone when you could just accept our fucking help for once. You were right about your weakness, and it almost did get you killed." Anko said before storming off. Itachi stared after her and then turned back to the rest of his friends and found them staring at their laps nervously. Gai walked up behind Itachi.

"She is right my friend, though she didn't say it in the most youthful of ways. You are going to get yourself killed at this rate. How do you think your brother would handle that?" Gai asked letting it sink in. Itachi went silent before leaving the bar and walking home. He listlessly sat at the table across from his mother. Naruto and Sasuke were training with Kakashi.

"What's wrong Itachi? I heard you ran into Orochimaru on your last mission." She said with a slight shiver at realizing the man wanted to take over her body.

"He used a jutsu called Edo Tensei. He brought back father and tried making me fight him." Itachi said melancholically. Mikoto's eyes widened and she suddenly found her coffee very interesting.

"How did you handle it?" she asked after a minute of silence. Itachi remained silent.

"I killed him." Itachi said. More silence. Mikoto walked over to her eldest son and gave him a hug. He stiffened at the contact before relaxing. Tears began leaking from his eyes but he made no noise.

"All the death I have caused. I can barely bear it. Some nights I think of ending it all. But then I remember I have people to protect. And even now I anger them by risking my life to keep them safe. Why can't I just die? I deserve it." Itachi spoke sadly as tears continued to pour down his face. Mikoto just rubbed his back soothingly and they sat like that for an hour in silence.

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"So back again asshole?" Anko said, still angry at the Uchiha.

"Shut up." The Uchiha snapped shocking everyone. Anko looked hurt for a moment before anger filled her face.

"I'm on leave for a while. I won't be in the active rank for a few weeks. I felt I should inform you of this."

"What?! Why?!" Asuma shouted.

"You're one of our best. Why would they take you out?" Hayate asked.

"… Mental instability they said. They believe that in my current state of mind I am a flight risk." He said, shocking everyone.

"…Why do they think that Itachi?" Anko said quietly.

"…"

"Why the fuck do they think that Itachi?!" Anko shouted.

"I threatened to kill myself last night. My mother told the Hokage." Itachi said. Everyone's face darkened as they all went silent.

"Why?"

"Why does any ninja break down? I have the blood of thousands on my hands."

"It's part of the job description!" Anko shouted. Itachi remained silent. Anko stood up and slapped him across the face before storming off. All of the jonin slowly departed, silent.

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"Hokage-sama. I wish to leave the village for a period of time. Clear my head." Itachi spoke. Hiruzen leveled a stare at him.

"What's the real reason?" Hiruzen asked.

"I intend to hunt down Orochimaru and end him once and for all." Itachi spoke.

"No. I'm not having you go run off to get yourself killed."

"Hokage-sama. I can kill him. I need to protect my family."

"And you intend to do that by getting yourself killed?"

"You don't understand! I almost lost them once, I will not lose them again" Itachi shouted before calming himself.

"You shouldn't bottle up so much emotion Itachi. That's why you are becoming unstable. Let some of it out. I expect you to take over for me in a year, but I can't do that if you intend to die before that." Hiruzen spoke. Itachi was silent in contemplation.

"I'm losing my edge Hokage-sama. The paranoia and depression is weakening me."

"And what do you intend to do about that?"

"I… I don't know." Itachi replied, his head bowed.

"That's the first step. You can't do everything yourself. Take the load off and spread it among your comrades. Together you the will of fire burns greater than it does alone." The Hokage said with a smile. Itachi looked at the ground for a moment. Every thought flashed through his head. The happiness he felt when he had saved his brother from the darkness. The faith he had put in Naruto. The words he spoke to both of them.

'You can't do it alone. You need to rely on your comrades.'

"You're right Hokage-sama. I was blinded by my own goals. But you're right. I need to rely on my comrades." The Hokage smiled at him.

"Go on, get back to your training. You're going to need to be strong enough if you want to become the Godaime.

"Thank you Hokage-sama."

Itachi made his way to the forest of death. As he arrive he had to dodge a kunai.

"What do you want asshole?" Anko said as she appeared.

"I wanted to apologize."

"Apology not accepted. Try again." Anko said.

"I am truly sorry for my behavior. I just want to protect you all. I can't lose anymore loved ones."

"We aren't weak Itachi. We can defend ourselves. Try protecting yourself for a change."

"That's the new plan. I will have to put my faith in my comrades if I intend to get anywhere in this world."

"Damn straight." Anko said back to him. She began to walk away when Itachi approached her. He wrapped his arms around her, feeling her stiffen.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Anko asked in surprise.

"I'm sorry that I keep disappointing and hurting you all. I can only hope that I manage to make up for it in the future. That's all I wanted to say." And with that Itachi was gone in a flurry of leaves, leaving behind an embarrassed Anko.

Two weeks later Itachi was taken off of leave after it was determined that his mental state had improved. After returning from his first mission since returning from leave he walked into a house full of people. The entirety of the Konoha twelve were there as well as most of the jonin he normally associated with.

"What are you all doing in my house…?" Itachi asked.

"We are here to help you fan the flames of youth!" Gai shouted.

"Yosh! Let us burn with youth Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!"

"Lee!"

"Gai-sensei!" The two shouted as they embraced. What occurred next would permanently scar most of the people present for life as what appeared to be an ocean and a sunset appeared behind them. Itachi twitched.

"Why are you all in my house?" Itachi asked again.

"Just hanging around, eating your food and shit." Anko said.

"Why are you all in my house?"

"We missed you?" Kakashi offered.

"Why. Are. You. All. In. My. House?" Itachi asked punctuating each word.

"Itachi relax, we all just wanted to make sure you were okay." Naruto said.

"Yeah just making sure you don't get all depressed again brother." Sasuke added. Itachi sighed before going to the cabinet and pulling out his secret stash of pocky and began eating it slowly at the table. Everyone stared at him and sweat dropped.

"You're really awkward, you know that right?" Genma said.

"I am aware." Itachi replied without looking up.

"How about you show us how strong you really are Itachi? Or are you scared you might lose?" Anko said deviously. Itachi stared at her as everyone looked at him expectantly.

"And how do you propose we do that?" Itachi replied. Anko grinned sadistically.

"You versus me, Gai, Kakashi, and Asuma."

"What do I get if I win?" Itachi asked.

"I'll have sex with you?" Half the room broke out laughing the other half blushed. Itachi stared at her blankly.

"Try again."

"Really? Are you gay?"

"No. Lifetime supply of pocky at all of your expense." Everyone stared blankly at him.

"You would pick candy… over sex?" Anko asked slowly.

"Yes." Itachi replied.

"I lied earlier, you're just plain weird." Genma said.

"What happens if you win?" Itachi asked.

"You have to fulfill one request for each of us, redeemable at any time, no arguments." Itachi looked to be contemplating this.

"Deal. When?"

"Let's go to the training ground right now." Anko said excited.

"We can go to training ground seven, its open right now." Kakashi put in.

"Fine. Let's go."

The group arrived at the training ground and the combatants stood across from each other while the rest stood a distance away and watched.

"Ready? Begin!" Genma shouted. Itachi made eye contact with Gai while pointing a finger at Asuma. Their faces both went blank and Itachi disappeared before anyone could react and he buried a fist in Anko's gut, spun around her kicking Kakashi in the face then swiping Gai's legs out from under him and ending with a flip to slam the front of his foot into the back of Asuma's head. This all happened in the matter of a few seconds. The second all four jonin hit the ground, the rolled up and charged. Kakashi pulled up his headband revealing his sharingan, Gai opened the first two gates, Asuma pulled out his trench knives and Anko sent Snakes flying at Itachi from her sleeves. Itachi dodged the snakes, only to be kicked in the side by Gai sending him flying into Asuma who almost sliced him with his knives which Itachi barely rolled out of the way of only to have Anko and Kakashi flanking him while Gai attacked from above.

Seeing no other choice he opened on of the gates and round housed Anko and punched Kakashi across the face and side stepping Gai. Suddenly he felt a sharp pain in his back as Asuma slashed him. Itachi gritted his teeth and spun, swiping Asuma's legs out from under him. The fight continued like this, going back and forth evenly matched. The crowd watched, awed by the power displayed by all of them. Finally the other decided to take it up a notch. Gai unleashed the fifth gate, Kakashi sent a Raikiri charged lighting dog at Itachi, Anko sent a swarm of thousands of snakes at him, and Asuma blew a cloud of superheated ash at him. Seeing his imminent defeat Itachi decided to go all out. As they all thought the fight was over, suddenly a giant spectral figure formed around Itachi.

"Susanoo." Itachi spoke. All of their attacks slammed into it yet didn't even damage it.

"What… the fuck?" Anko uttered. All of them stared in shock at the power radiating off of Itachi.

"It seems you don't quite understand. I might not believe in being arrogant, but I do know my own abilities. I am stronger than you all, and if I wanted to I could kill everyone present, including the bystanders, from here with a single swing."

"Match, Itachi." Genma said still shaking slightly.

"That's a lifetime of pocky Itachi said as his eyes started to bleed.

"How much did you hold back?" Anko asked annoyed.

"I could have killed you all the second the fight started, but I wouldn't want to endanger you're lives." Itachi said. Anko looked miffed at that, but accepted it as Itachi's power.

"Out of curiosity, what would you all have asked for?"

"Daily spars!"

"Pay for all of my books."

"Pay for all of my cigarettes."

"Sex." Everyone stared at her.

"What?"

"Is that cough cough all you think about?" Hayate coughed out.

"Not all, only with powerful people. And Itachi is pretty much the strongest person I've ever met."

"Thank you for your faith, but I believe you have met the Yondaime in the past. He would beat me in a fight easily." Itachi replied.

'I don't know about that Naruto. This guy is strong. Really strong. Like Madara strong.' Kurama said in his head.

"Kurama says you're as strong as Madara." Itachi froze at this. At this point, after they all had become good friends and sparred among each other they all learned of Naruto's secret.

"Really now?" Itachi replied.

"He says you're the strongest Uchiha he's ever seen that isn't an arrogant asshole."

"Tell him I appreciate it." Itachi said before a masked man appeared out of a swirl in front of Itachi and reached out for him grabbing him before he disappeared with him.

"No!" Naruto shouted, knowing what happened. Sasuke went into shock at recognizing the man. Everyone also stared in surprise before the all disappeared in different directions in search of the man.

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Itachi roughly landed in a dank cave. Surrounding him was the entirety of the Akatsuki, in holographic or physical form.

"I could have just left you in my pocket dimension, but it thought this would be more fun." Tobi said in a childish voice.

"What do you intend to do?" Itachi spoke as he stood up, worn out from the fight.

"You seem to be hunting us down. I cannot allow that. If you agree to submit to our will, we will not have to kill you." Pain spoke.

"Do you honestly think any of them could defeat me?" Itachi bluffed knowing he was weakened and if he fought he would probably die.

"Hey fucker, you really think you can take on the Akatsuki? You Uchiha all are arrogant fucks, it's no wonder you're all dead. Jashin-sama will enjoy your sacrifice." Itachi took note of the ones physically present. Hidan. Kakuzu. Kisame. And a man he didn't recognize.

'No choice. I need to end this quickly. At any cost.' He glanced up at Kisame knowing he was the biggest threat at the moment.

"Are you prepared to die?" Obito said in a sadistic tone.

"Are you? Tsukuyomi!" Instantly Kisame was on the ground panting and vomiting, though not unconscious. Obito's one eye widened at this.

"Fuck you cocksucker!" Hidan shouted as he bared down upon him with his scythe.

'An immortal. Let's see how immortal you really are.'

"Amaterasu!" Screams filled the room as Hidan ignited in back flames. The screams never seemed to end. Itachi's vision was incredibly fuzzy now. Now Pain and Konan's eyes widened while Kakuzu shot out his five hearts and charged at Itachi. Itachi weaved in and out of the attacks expertly and hopped onto Kakuzu's former perch and stared down at him.

"Amaterasu… huh… huh…" Itachi ignited Kakuzu and all of his hearts, killing the man in an instant. The unfamiliar face charged him. Decided not to take any chances he summoned Susanoo and pierced the man mid-air with Totsuka sealing his fate. With a hint of regret Itachi used Amaterasu on Kisame's downed body.

"No, no, no, no, no! You were supposed to die not massacre half my men!" Obito shouted. Pain showed surprise for the first time to any of them. This man was on par with his skill and he was supposed to be a God.

"You're arrogance is truly great… Obito Uchiha!" The practically blind Itachi shouted.

Obito froze then roared in rage before disappearing into thin air.

"You have brought the wrath of a God upon you. Be prepared Uchiha."

"I will be 'Nagato'." Itachi panted out. Nagato leveled a stair at him.

"I don't go by that name anymore. How you found it out, I do not know. Know this though. I will kill you and destroy your village, then I will gather the Bijuu."

"You can try." Itachi said as all of the holographs faded. Blinded Itachi was forced to use his ears and the miniscule amount of chakra he had left to navigate his way to the exit. He passed out at the entrance, blood pouring down his face.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"What do you mean our strongest Shinobi was kidnapped?" Hiruzen bellowed at the gathered ninja.

"A man appeared out of the air and touched him, and they both vanished. We scoured the area and had two byakugans searching and there was no trace of either of them." Kakashi spoke.

"I recognized that man… He was the one who massacred my clan." Sasuke spoke. This news disturbed everyone. Naruto tried to figure out how to tell them who it was without revealing Itachi's secret.

"Itachi told me who it was once. He wasn't sure, but all of his searching pointed to the fact that he was... Obito Uchiha." Naruto said knowing the backlash that was about to hit.

"Naruto. Obito's dead. I saw him crushed myself." Kakashi said as his breath hitched.

"Itachi was certain it was him."

'Kid you're pushing it a little telling everyone this so soon.'

'I know but if we want to stand a chance, they need to be prepared. And as much as I don't want to admit it, Itachi is probably dead by now.' Silence filled the room.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Two weeks had passed and there was no sign of Itachi in the entire country. It was assumed he had been killed in action. There was a large funeral ceremony that the entire ninja force attended. Morale was at its lowest since the Yondaime's death. Even Jiraiya had returned to the village to ensure its safety.

Anko had fallen into a deep depression. Kakashi spent nearly the entire day at the memorial stone now. Sasuke was nearly catatonic in his room. Mikoto couldn't stop crying. And Naruto. Well Naruto had trained every skill he had to the point it had once been. He was going to finish what Itachi had started.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Off in a distant village Itachi was removing the bandages from his face. One eye remained blind. When he opened the other, the eternal Mangekyou Sharingan blazed to life.

'Shisui. I owe you so much… and no matter what I do, I can never repay you. The chunin exams are starting. Orochimaru will use this as an excuse to get Sasuke. I have to stop him.

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"I know this is a depressing time for everyone, but I signed you all up for the chunin exams. I think it's a good way for everyone to get their minds off of everything. Are you willing to participate?" Kakashi asked. He was met with the most determined stares he had ever seen on his teams face.

"Yes!" They all chorused.

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Author's note: And so it all changes now. Itachi is half blind, and has one eternal sharingan. Team seven is more motivated than ever now. Itachi's sickness continues to develop. Chunin exams are starting, and Itachi intends to end Orochimaru once and for all. A lot of shit went on during this chapter. And it's all gonna come to a head soon. Don't worry the stories not close to over yet, despite how much shit just happened. I have a few ideas of how to extend it all. Hopefully I kept all of your attention and didn't ruin it for anyone.


	4. Chapter 4

Itachi Uchiha: Turning Back the Pendulum

Chapter 4

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And so the chunin exams had begun. The Konoha twelve. Having put all of their differences aside thanks to some time around Naruto, they agreed to work together if the time came in the exams. Naruto looked around the room and recognized many familiar faces. The sand siblings. The sound ninja. Kabuto's team. All of the memories came flooding back and now Naruto understood Itachi's burden a bit more. It was oppressive, the fear of changing too much and losing a loved one. He strengthened his resolve, knowing he could succeed if he put his mind to it.

The proctor, Ibiki, explained the exam to all of the genin. It was the same as the first time around, Naruto happily noted. Realizing all he needed to do was answer the last question correctly, he relaxed for the time being.

When the time for the last question came, and Ibiki warned them that they would stay genin forever if they got this question wrong. Despite knowing he probably shouldn't, Naruto couldn't help but speak up.

"Listen scar face, I don't care if I'm a genin forever! I'll still become Hokage! What kind of ninja backs down just because the odds are against him? Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted, slamming his palm on the table. This seemed to make the other genin think and steel themselves.

"No one else is going to leave? Very well, you all pass." Ibiki said with a smirk. Most of the room were shocked at this, as he explained the responsibility of a chunin.

Suddenly a black ball smashed in through the window, unfurling into a banner with a woman in front of it.

"Seventy eight Ibiki? Really? You're losing your touch." Anko chided.

"These are an exceptional group this time around." He replied.

"Oh well. Their numbers will be halved in the next exam." She said with a sadistic laugh, though it seemed hollow.

"Alright maggots, follow me." Anko said exiting through the window.

Upon arriving at what she proclaimed as the 'Forest of Death' she explained the rules of the exam.

"Each team will receive a heaven or earth scroll. You're mission is to get the other scroll and then make it to the tower in the middle within five days. You are not to open the scrolls until you get to the tower. Lethal force is authorized. You will be required to sign waivers so Konoha can't be held liable for your deaths." Anko said as her and several other proctors passed out forms. After collecting them, the genin teams were sent one at a time to receive a scroll in a tent. After all the teams had their scrolls they were lined up at their assigned positions in front of the gate.

A buzzer sounded and the doors opened. All of the teams took off at high speeds. Almost instantly screams of death were heard.

"I have a plan." Sasuke said.

"So do I. We're the strongest team in here, and I have nearly endless chakra. I'm just gonna spam clones and try and wear a few of the other teams, find out where they are and shit dattebayo!" Naruto shouted with a grin.

"I had a more logical plan, but if that's what you wanna do, go ahead. How about this though, turn them all into copies of our team and have them go out in groups of threes."

"How about you turn some clones into scrolls? You know the exploding clone jutsu, right?" Sakura asked. Naruto nodded with a grin before summoning nearly a thousand clones, while his two teammates sweat dropped at his excessiveness. They all transformed into copies of team seven, scrolls, and some even turned into weapons.

"Weapons Naruto?" Sasuke asked curiously.

"It'll work, trust me." Soon they were off. Several groups of memories returning later, some explosions in the distance, and three knocked out teams, team seven now had three heaven scrolls and one earth scroll.

"I'm actually impressed for once Naruto. I thought you were too stupid for that plan to work." Sakura said teasingly. Naruto feigned hurt at this.

"Sakura, that hurts."

"She's right dobe."

"You too teme?!" Naruto shouted. Sasuke was about to reply when a huge gust tore through the area, separating Naruto from his teammates.

"Hello Sasuke-kun. I'm happy to see you alive and well." A female Kusa ninja said in a disgusting tone.

"What the fuck do you want?"

"I want… you!" She shouted charging the Uchiha. Sasuke barely managed to dodge her intense speeds. Sasuke attempted to grab Sakura and run, when a killing intent so intense that Sasuke could barely breathe filled the area. Sakura barely managed to hold back tears while Sasuke struggled to get his body to move.

"Are you scared of dying Sasuke?" The Kusa ninja taunted. Sasuke found that he couldn't muster the will to reply. Pulling out a kunai, the woman approached.

Dread and despair filled Sasuke's soul as the ninja approached. Sasuke pulled out a kunai of his own and drove it into his leg, freeing him of his fear.

"So you used pain to overcome your fear? Impressive Sasuke-kun." The woman cackled.

"Fuck. You!" Sasuke shouted and nearly disappeared at the speeds he moved. The woman smirked and blocked the first kick with ease, then caught the follow up punch and twisted to avoid the kunai coming at her throat thrown by a panting Sakura. Sasuke used the opportunity to break free. Sasuke shot a giant fire dragon at the Kusa ninja while Sakura peppered the area around her with exploding kunai. The resulting explosion obscured their vision of her, but they hoped she was dead.

"Kukukuku… I expected you to be impressive but to think your teammate had some skill as well." A man's voice came from the smoke. Stepping out from the smoke was a pale man with purple marks above his eyes. He had a second layer of skin melting off of his face.

"You… you're Orochimaru of the Sannin!" Sakura shouted. Fear ran deep through the genin's souls.

"What… what do you want from us?"

"I want your body Sasuke-kun. How about you accept a little gift from me." Suddenly there was a huge explosion in the distance as sand began to pile up into the air.

"It seems your friend is playing too." The Sannin said with a sick smile. Sasuke's eyes widened.

"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted.

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Naruto found himself careening through the forest at high speeds. He knew exactly what had happened and he needed to get back before Sasuke was taken by Orochimaru. Landing in a clearing, Naruto righted himself, not noticing the other ninja in the clearing.

"Mother is still thirsty. Your blood will do." A monotone voice said behind him. Naruto dived to the side as sand crashed where he had been standing.

"Gaara?! What are you doing?!" Naruto shouted.

"I am feeding you to mother. Now die." Gaara spoke. Naruto was put on the defensive as he continued to dodge the deranged boy's strikes.

'I forgot how insane he used to be.' Naruto thought as he dodged to the edge of the clearing.

"Can we do this some other time Gaara? I have something I need to do right now!" Naruto pleaded. Gaara remained silent as his sand continued to chase the Uzumaki while his teammates just stared. Naruto, getting tired of dodging and knowing Gaara's strengths and weaknesses, disappeared, leaving a surprised Jinchuriki. Appearing inside of Gaara's sand shield Naruto slammed his fist into the Jinchuriki's gut, shocking all present.

"No… no one's ever hit Gaara!" Temari shouted.

"What is this kid?!" Kankuro asked incredulously. Gaara looked shocked before developing a psychotic grin on his face.

"Mother will love you blood! She's screaming for it!" Naruto blanched at this before kicking the Jinchuriki away, barely dodging the sand. The fight continued like this, Naruto barely dodging the sand and striking Gaara, with Gaara unable to react. Frustrated, Gaara summoned and orb of sand around him. Recalling how Sasuke had beaten it, Naruto decided to through caution to the wind and charged forward with a Rasengan. Temari and Kankuro stared in awe at the raw power behind the jutsu.

"Take this!" Naruto shouted, slamming the Rasengan into the orb, grinding deep into it, before Gaara was sent flying through the back of it.

"My… blood? I'm bleeding? What is this feeling? Is this pain? Argh!" Gaara roared psychotically as he began to transform into a mini Shukaku. Naruto began to sweat at this.

'Kurama, I might need some help.' Naruto said.

'On it brat. With the seal I can barely give you one tail, so make it count.' Suddenly a red foxlike cloak wrapped around Naruto. Temari and Kankuro had already fled the area in fear, and the killing intent currently flooding the forest had almost all genin frozen, and several of the jonin who recognized this chakra began to worry.

"Come on!" Naruto roared gutturally as he charged the one tailed Gaara. The two clashed, Naruto overpowering him slightly. What occurred next could only be described as a battle of the titans. The two were destroying the very landscape around them as they fought a battle so hard that all other teams had stopped in fear at the sound of it. Having enough of this endless back and forth Naruto began gathering chakra into his hand, forming a large purple Rasengan. He charged the deranged Jinchuriki and roared as the Rasengan suddenly grew in size.

"Cho Oodama Rasengan!" Naruto shouted as he engulfed Gaara in a ball of destructive chakra, sending the boy careening through the forest. Naruto sighed in relief, having used up the rest of the chakra Kurama had given him. Turning to leave Naruto was stopped by a blood curdling scream. Naruto looked over his shoulder to see a giant Shukaku developing.

"Oh… shit…" Naruto mouthed out.

"What the fuck is that thing?!" Kiba shouted as he saw the demon in the distance. Even Shino looked scared while Hinata was worried that Naruto was in danger.

"Whatever that thing is we need to stay away from it." Shikamaru warned as his two teammates were frozen in fear.

"Oh fuck that's a fucking Bijuu!" Anko shouted from outside the forest.

"This is not a good sign." Hiruzen said from inside the tower as he looked over at the demon. That's when they heard the demon roar out a name, which chilled them all to the core.

"I'll kill you Naruto Uzumaki!" The Shukaku roared.

"Fuck." Naruto and Kurama said together.

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"Get the fuck out of my way, I need to save him!" Sasuke yelled as he charged the Sannin with reckless abandon. Sakura too was unloading every weapon she had at the man to get him out of the way so they could save their teammate.

"Now, now Sasuke-kun, I need you to accept a gift first before I do that." Orochimaru said sinisterly as he easily dominated the infuriated Sasuke. Knocking the boy to the ground, Orochimaru's neck extended and he bared his fangs, reaching for the Uchiha's neck. Just as he was about to collide he felt a strong punch hit him in the face. He looked up and saw a terrified, yet determined Sakura standing in front of Sasuke, ready to protect him.

"Little girl… you should know your place!" he said as he knocked her out of the way with ease. Suddenly Sasuke was up and he sliced the Sannin across the face with a kunai, drawing blood from the Sannin for the first time in this fight.

Pure shock ran across Orochimaru's face as he had been injured by a mere genin. Suddenly he smiled wickedly.

"Oh you will make a fine body Sasuke-kun!" Orochimaru said, pinning the boy down and biting his neck, giving him the cursed seal. Or so he thought, he had bitten down on an armored arm instead.

"What?!" Orochimaru yelled as he was sent flying with a vicious kick. Standing across from him was a man who terrified him like no other being could.

Itachi Uchiha had returned. He one of his eyes contained a sharingan Orochimaru had never seen before, and the other stared blankly at him. So he was blind in one eye, the Sannin thought.

"Brother… you're alive?!" Sasuke said. Itachi ignored him, never letting his gaze leave the shocked snake.

"Orochimaru. I warned you about coming near my family or my village again. Now you will die." Black flames poured through the forest as the Sannin barely shed his skin in time. Charging forward with Kusanagi, Itachi met his charge head on dodging the blade and planting a fist in the Sannin's face, distorting it from the force and breaking the Sannin's jaw. Again he shed his skin and swiped Kusanagi at Itachi's throat, who in turn dispersed into crows which began flying around the Sannin. Realizing he was in a genjutsu the Sannin dispelled it, only to find Itachi backhanding him across the face. Another Amaterasu, and the Sannin shed his skin again.

"This will go on forever Itachi. I can't beat you and you can't kill me. You may as well let me leave now." The Sannin argued. Itachi glared at him. With only one eye he couldn't use Tsukuyomi or Susanoo against the Sannin. Unfortunately he was right about this.

"Run. Run and hide. Fear me. Because if I ever see you again… I will finish this!" Itachi spoke with authority.

"Itachi! I'm really happy you're alive but we need to help Naruto against that demo- what the fuck?" Sasuke asked as suddenly hundreds of the blonde were flying through the air at the demon with gigantic blue orbs in their hands.

"It seems Naruto is handling himself just fine." Itachi spoke as he disappeared, feeling he had interfered in the exam enough.

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'Kurama, now would be a great time for a full cloak.'

'The seals too strong right now! I physically can't give you a cloak. Shit dodge!' the giant fox shouted in his head as a giant ball of compressed air destroyed the area where the Uzumaki had been standing.

'Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck. What the fuck should I do?' Naruto thought.

'Sage mode!' the Kyuubi realized. Naruto stopped for a moment of thought. It was risky if he couldn't gather natural energy properly. But he had no choice at the moment, or he would die. Naruto spawned two clones and sent them off into the forest.

'Now I just need to keep dodging until the finish gathering natural chakra.' Naruto thought.

Naruto barely managed to keep dodging, the Ichibi being much faster than he realized. Suddenly he felt a rush of power. His eyes turned yellow with a rectangular pupil, and orange markings appeared above his eyes just as Shukaku's fist came down upon him. The Shukaku bellowed at this.

"I killed him, I killed him, I killed him!" suddenly he stopped laughing as he felt his fist get shoved back.

"Take this! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted as he charged an extremely large Cho Oodama Rasengan at the demon, destroy a chunk of its arm.

"Augh!" Shukaku roared in agony. Suddenly the blonde multiplied into hundreds who all charged up gigantic Rasengans and jumped at the demon.

"Cho Oodama Rasengan barrage!" the clones all shouted at once as they slammed the demon into the ground. All the clones but two disappeared as three Naruto's were left above the screaming demon.

'Kurama, pump as much chakra into me as you can. I'm ending this now!' Naruto shouted as he formed a Rasenshuriken as above Shukaku.

'You got it brat!' A grinning Kurama shouted as he pumped a tails worth of chakra into the Rasenshuriken. The orb grew to massive size and turned a deep purple.

"Cho Oodama Rasenshuriken!" Naruto shouted throwing the giant orb at the demon below. The resulting explosion destroyed nearly half of the forest as blades of wind chakra whipped everywhere.

"Dattebayo!" An exhausted Naruto shouted as he fell on top of the impact zone, his sage mode protecting him from injuring himself. On the ground next to him was a heavily bleeding, panting Gaara.

"How…?" Gaara asked, terrified.

'Kurama… is it possible to give him his memories back with your chakra?' Naruto asked. Kurama remained silent for a second.

'I can try.' Kurama spoke.

"No! Stay away!" Gaara shouted in terror as Naruto approached him. A bleeding Kankuro and Temari jumped in front of Gaara to protect him. Naruto appeared in between them, knocking them both back a ways before placing a hand on Gaara's head and forcing demonic chakra into him.

"Augh!" Gaara roared in agony as memories came flooding back. The last thing he remembered was fighting Madara Uchiha and then pain and darkness.

"Na… Naruto?" Gaara asked slowly.

"Good to have you back friend." Naruto said grinning before he hit the floor.

"What… in the actual… fuck?" Anko said as she viewed her now partially destroyed forest.

"It seems Naruto is stronger than we thought." Anko jumped at the familiar voice.

"But… you're supposed to be dead?! Who the fuck do you think you are?!"Anko shouted at Itachi.

"I can most certainly assure you, I am not dead. I did however lose part of my eyesight and a good portion of my power. In the process I killed four S rank ninja, so I believe it was a fair trade." Itachi said monotonously. Anko stared at him in shock as tears began to pour down her face. She hugged him and cried into his shoulder.

"I thought you were dead… we all thought you were dead…" she cried. Itachi merely stared off into the distance, realizing that perhaps his desires for death were wrong. Maybe he would stick around for a while longer.

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"What's going on?" Naruto asked as he woke up in a bed surrounded by most of his friends.

"I should be asking you that Naruto. When did you get strong enough to fight a Bijuu by yourself? And how do you know the Rasengan?" the Hokage asked with an edge to his voice.

"Um… I've been this strong for a while now. And as for the Rasengan…. Well when the Yondaime sealed the Kyuubi into me he also sealed a bit of his chakra in me. Well I ran into him in my mind. He told me he was my father and put all of his knowledge into my head about his techniques. I've only managed to get the Rasengan down, the rest I don't really understand that well." Naruto lied. The Hokage stared at him in worry while most of the room was shocked by the knowledge of Naruto's heritage.

"Very well Naruto. As you all realize this information never leaves this room. Am I understood?" Everyone gulped and nodded to their Hokage.

Itachi was standing off on the corner of the room, staring off blankly at a wall thinking.

'I need to get Shisui's other eye. But they only way to do that is to kill Danzo.'

"Alright, cough cough, my name is Gekko Hayate, cough cough, I will be the proctor of this part of the exam. We currently have too many candidates cough cough. Does anyone wish to not continue?

Naruto looked around the room with a hint of surprise. The Suna siblings were there, looking very injured. The sound ninja were absent. Teams eight, seven, ten, Gai, and Kabuto were there. Most of the genin had severe injuries however, looking like they had been sliced up.

"I cannot continue, I'm too injured." Kabuto spoke. His team nodded and they too backed out. Hinata and Kiba backed out as well as Chouji and Ino. Tenten from team Gai backed down as well. Naruto looked around in surprise, never having seen this happen before. That left team seven, the Suna siblings, Shino, Shikamaru, Lee and Neji.

'Well that went differently than expected. Where did they get those injuries?' Naruto thought.

'Gee, I wonder dumbass. 'Cho Oodama Rasenshuriken'? Why not go and level a chunk of the forest? It seems like as smart idea, doesn't it?' the fox mocked.

'… oops?' Naruto thought.

"Very well, we will move on to the final exam in one month it will be tournament that…" Hayate spoke as it went in one ear and out the other for Naruto. He was more focused on figuring out how to explain his skills to Sasuke when the Uchiha's inferiority complex left him enraged.

"The match ups will be as such. Shikamaru versus Temari. Sakura versus Shino. Lee versus Neji. Kankuro versus Gaara. And Naruto versus Sasuke."

Everyone looked at their opponent in determination, or fear for one of them. Naruto and Sasuke looked like they were on top of the world. However a bit of doubt entered Sasuke's mind. Naruto showed so much power in the forest… how was he supposed to defeat him one on one?

"Naruto… how did you get so strong?" Sasuke asked quietly to a boy he considered a brother. Naruto was silent for a few minutes, making brief eye contact with Itachi, who while catching up with his fellow ninja had heard there conversation. Naruto pleaded him with his eyes to tell Sasuke the truth. Itachi looked torn for a moment before finally nodding.

"Sasuke, if you want to know we need to go somewhere private. Okay?" Naruto asked carefully. Sasuke nodded and they went to an abandoned room in the basement. Suddenly Naruto slammed a hand on top of Sasuke's skull forcing Kurama's chakra into the boy. Sasuke screamed from the pain before his eyes went blank. Suddenly a cold look appeared on his face.

"Thank you Naruto." Sasuke said coldly. Naruto began to regret his decision as Sasuke suddenly flashed his Mangekyou at him. Naruto flinched and tensed up.

"I will get my revenge Naruto… I want to destroy the village, but it seems that the village is no longer to blame. The only one to blame is… the masked man!" Sasuke finished with authority.

"Don't worry, I'm still me. Just with new memories dobe. You're my brother and that's not going to change." Sasuke said with a smirk. Naruto laughed at this before high fiving the new Sasuke.

"Let's put on a hell of a show Sasuke!" Naruto shouted.

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"I don't think it's very fair for me to train either of you for the final exam, but I will be training Sakura to fight Shino." Kakashi said.

"No, take on Sasuke too. I met a man who is really strong and is willing to teach me. Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted. Kakashi looked at him surprised.

"I… if you're sure Naruto. Come Sasuke, Sakura. We need to begin training immediately." Kakashi said as the three walked off into the distance. The grin left Naruto's face as a man with long white hair and markings on his face appeared behind him.

"You have some explaining to do." Jiraiya spoke seriously. Naruto sighed and turned around, choking at the sight of the pain he considered as his father figure.

"I'll explain everything ero-sennin. I just need Itachi to help." Naruto said. Jiraiya nodded and the former student and master began looking for the returned Uchiha.

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"So you're telling me that you managed to turn back time due to a fourth great war? And that in the original timeline you massacred you're entire clan in one night? This is a little farfetched Itachi." Jiraiya said incredulously. Itachi sighed for a moment, expecting the expert Shinobi and spymaster not to believe him.

"I assure you I am not lying. How do you think I knew about the Akatsuki? Their hunt for the Jinchuriki? The powers of the masked man? That Orochimaru would invade during the chunin exams?" Itachi argued.

"… I still don't want to believe that such a jutsu exists. It's horrifying if it got into the hands of someone who would abuse it." Jiraiya said, accepting the story for now. Itachi nodded in agreement, while Naruto couldn't stop staring at his former mentor in joy.

"Well I don't know what you expect me to teach you since you supposedly know everything I know at this point…" Jiraiya trailed off, sad that he couldn't help his godson.

"Ero-sennin you helped me so much the first time around. Plus I need the toad contract, and you could help me loosen the seal, and you could help me get my strength up, and teach me some new jutsu and and…" Naruto trailed off hoping he would be able to see his father figure again.

"Alright, alright, god brat you're really energetic. And what's this ero-sennin shit?" Jiraiya asked with a tic mark.

"You are a pervert, so I call you ero-sennin." Naruto deadpanned.

"I'm not a pervert… I'm a super pervert!" Jiraiya shouted. Itachi and Naruto blankly stared at him and he sighed.

"Ah well. Let's get to work Naruto. Let's go sign the toad contract. You're going to need to impress Bunta if you wanna have them work with you." Jiraiya said with a laugh. Naruto grinned at this.

"Bring it on, dattebayo!" Naruto shouted. Jiraiya looked at him fondly.

'He's more like you two then I ever would have thought. You both would be so proud.' Jiraiya thought. With that the reunited student and master walked off to train. Itachi stared after them with his good eye before disappearing into the night.

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One month passed faster than any of the genin were prepared for. The genin were gathered ready for the exams. Naruto, Gaara, and Sasuke had done their part of keeping in character for the time being, with Gaara acting slightly nicer to his siblings, Naruto taking his training more seriously, and Sasuke making leaps and bounds in strength. Itachi was sitting in the Kage booth behind the Hokage as his sole guard while the Kazekage had two guards, yet you could see the lightest bit of nervous sweat on his brow and a tension in his body. This was something the Hokage took note of. All of the competitors looked excited to be there, but none more so then Naruto and Sasuke. They would bring about a fight the likes of which no one had ever seen.

"And so it begins…" Itachi mumbled staring out of his one eternal Mangekyou.

"Shikamaru and Temari remain. The rest of you go to the stands." The genin complied with a complaining Shikamaru.

"Ready. Begin!" Genma shouted.

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Author's note: not much to say here, other than I've got a plan for everything, and I hope I answered some people's questions in this chapter. Have fun.


	5. Author's note

Authors note: So i just got a full time job plus overtime as a landscaper, so i might not have quite as much energy or time to write, but now worries, i have no social life so thats what ill do with the rest of my time XD. Just letting you guys know since i have a habit of updating once a day, that might not happen anymore. I'm really sorry, but i need money lol.


	6. Chapter 5

Itachi Uchiha: Turning Back the Pendulum

Chapter 5

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As the match progressed relatively the same way as the first time around, Naruto began to zone out as a thousand thoughts went through his mind.

'Orochimaru is going to invade, and we have no idea how strong he actually is this time around. At least we all have a plan of how we are gonna do this now. Sasuke and Itachi are really good at figuring this shit out, I would have been lost dattebayo.' Naruto thought.

'Will admit the Uchiha usually are good at making plans. Just not always the sanest ones.' Kurama joked. Shikamaru surrendered as expected, but not before showing expert tactical skills, and making a proper retreat when to no longer take unnecessary risks. The next fight was a little lack luster, not because Sakura was weak by any means. She was stronger than Shino physically and mentally, but she was at a disadvantage of range and his bug clones. Try as she might, she couldn't get a solid hit on him before the bugs had drained her almost dry, leaving her gasping on the ground. Naruto thought she had got a bullshit match, while Sasuke outright knew that it was a horrible match up for the close range specialist.

"YOSH! We can now show our flames of youth Neji! Let us go!" Lee shouted dragging an annoyed Neji along with him.

"Lee, Neji, hold nothing back. I want my students to go all out to show their flames of youth!" Gai shouted from the stands as his eyes narrowed at the Kazekage and his guards.

"Yosh sensei. Let us go all out my rival!" Lee said as he removed his weights. Neji got into the Juken stance. What had occurred next left everyone gaping. The weights the odd boy in the green spandex had dropped left giant craters and dust clouds.

"Oh shit, Lee's going all out. This will be fun to watch." Naruto said. Sasuke looked at him curiously before his eyes widened as Lee literally vanished for a moment. Activating his sharingan, he trailed the boys' high speed and saw Neji barely whirl out of the way to avoid a straight punch. He ducked under a Konoha Senpu and continued dodging before getting frustrated. Catching Lee's wrist, he began spinning with a shout of Kaiten. The boy literally was being torn up by the spinning chakra as he was sent flying.

All of the Hyuga were in a state of shock at a branch member knowing a main branches technique. Their shock continued as the boy got into the eight trigrams stance.

Lee couldn't dodge in time as Neji unloaded sixty-four strikes onto his rival. Lee was sent skidding, but he maintained his balance, panting heavily and coughing up some blood.

"Proctor, call it. If he keeps going he will only get worse." Genma nodded and started to call the match when Lee lit up with chakra, ripping his tenketsu open.

"The gates Gai? Really, that's incredibly dangerous for someone his age!" Kakashi argued.

"The boy has no talent for ninjutsu or genjutsu. He needed something to help him survive in the ninja world, so I taught him to be a taijutsu expert." Gai said in a serious voice, eyes never leaving his students.

"How many can he open?"

"Since he began training with Naruto and Sasuke? Six."

"Are you insane?! That could destroy his body!" Kakashi yelled. Gai remained silent as he watched his pupils.

Everyone was staring in shock as Lee began to turn red as pure power radiated from him. Even Neji looked nervous for a moment.

"Sixth Gate! Gate of View!" Lee shouted as he charged forward, intent on ending this fight in a moment. Instantly, Neji found himself flying into the sky with intense pain in his jaw and neck. He barely had time to react as he heard Lee shout the most terrifying words he had heard in a long time.

"Hidden Lotus!" Neji decided he needed to react somehow. He had never used this technique in combat before, and never thought it feasible to do it while flying through the air. Deciding that he had no choice, he got into his Juken stance as the first fist flew at him. He met the strike, pain shooting through both of their arms.

"Eight Trigrams! 128 palms!" The entirety of the Hyuga clan gasped at this advanced technique. The technique was at least feasible, though improbable. But using it in midair was unheard of.

Neji and Lee traded blow for blow, not barely dodging the majority of the strikes. The two hit the ground and charged at blinding speed, both intent on proving who the superior taijutsu specialist was.

"Yosh! Look at them fan the flames of youth!"

"I'll admit Gai, your students are really impressive. But just wait until you see mine." Kakashi said with an eye smile.

The two fighter looked like they were beginning to where down the two separated for a moment, panting heavily. Neji coughed for a moment. That moment was all Lee needed as he hit the boy with a Konoha Senpu before hitting the ground himself, knocking both of them unconscious.

"Match draw!" Genma shouted. The crowd erupted into cheers at the two boys. Naruto and Sasuke smirked. If they liked that they were going to have a heart attack at their fight.

"Next match, Gaara of Suna versus-" "I surrender proctor!" Kankuro shouted in fear. Gaara stared at him for a moment before mumbling about cowardly brothers.

"Al… alright. Next match, Sasuke Uchiha versus Naruto Uzumaki." The crowd went silent in anticipation as the two boys walked out. Sasuke and Naruto were in their normal clothing, the Sasuke had long baggy sleeves and a cloak while Naruto had on a red cape with flames along the bottom.

"Are both opponents ready?" Genma asked as they both had their eyes closed. Their eyes snapped open, one revealing a Mangekyou Sharingan and the other revealing the eyes of a toad sage.

"Yes." The two spoke. The amount of chakra flowing in the stadium between the two had everyone staring in awe.

"Let's put on a show teme."

"My thoughts exactly dobe." And it begin. They both vanished. Faster than anyone could trace as they began a taijutsu battle, neither one getting a true advantage over each other. The hits resounded throughout the arena, impressing all ninja who were watching. Soon the two backed off and began going through jutsus. Sasuke sent out a fire dragon, which Naruto barely overpowered with a super charged torrent of wind. The resulting explosion left a giant inferno in the middle of the arena that took a moment to die down. The sounds of birds chirping could be heard inside the cloud as it disappeared. Standing on either side of the arena was Sasuke with a full powered Chidori, and Naruto with a fully charged Rasengan. The two charged each other at high speeds before shouting in unison.

"Chidori/Rasengan!" the jutsu collided, neither one overpowering the other, causing a huge orb of pure chakra to form around the two. The crowd was wide eyed by the pure power of the two techniques. Suddenly the ball exploded and the two were sent skidding back. They smirked as Sasuke spoke.

"We should start taking this seriously you know." The crowd gaped at that. The two weren't even serious yet?!

"Let's do this." Naruto summoned two clones as they began forming a Rasenshuriken in his hand. Sasuke's eye bleed as the field around him lit with the flames of Amaterasu now shocking all ninja in the crowd. What happened next impressed everyone as Sasuke began to manipulate some of the flames into his hand.

"Rasenshuriken!"

"Kagutsuchi!" Sasuke shouted as a ball of black fire appeared in his hand. The two ninja threw their jutsu at each other, causing them to ignite and creating an explosion of fire and wind that the crowd could feel the heat from.

Naruto and Sasuke barely dodged the wind blades and the fire before charging each other and engaging again. The fight ensued for a while, each getting the occasional strike in. Separating, the two smirked at each other.

"Let's take this too the next level Sasuke."

"Fine by me." Sasuke replied coolly, though one could feel the excitement in his voice. Now the crowd was in a state of disbelief. These two could go even further. Then what happened next horrified them to no end, leaving terror running through every ninja and civilians veins.

Sasuke's Susanoo formed around him, one hand holding a boy and another holding a ball of fire while the last held a flaming black sword. Naruto on the other hand lit gold with seals all over him and a long jacket went down his body.

"Hmm. Impressive dobe."

"Not bad yourself teme. I'm still gonna win teme. Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted. Naruto shouted as a fully formed glowing Kyuubi formed around him, sending the crowd into terror before noting that the chakra seemed to calm them, confusing them.

"In your dreams dobe!" Sasuke said as he began firing Amaterasu arrows at his best friend. Naruto and the Kyuubi dodged left and right before slamming into Susanoo and attempting to rip it too shreds. Sasuke maneuvered out of the way and sliced off one of the Kyuubi's before shooting an arrow through its center. Or so he thought. The arrow was caught be a claw shooting out of the Kyuubi's side before it was crushed. The battle continued for hours as the two destroyed the very landscape of the arena, careful not to involve anyone else. Orochimaru began sweating as he realized how powerful the leaf ninja currently were. He had a contingency plan though. He always had a contingency plan he thought, smirking.

The two boys ran out of fumes and were back on the ground, though Naruto was still in his basic Kyuubi cloak form and Sasuke still had the Mangekyou out, though his vision was beginning to fade.

"Last shot?"

"Yeah… last shot." And with that they charged, Kagutsuchi in one hand and a Rasenshuriken in the other. Instead of exploding though they combined perfectly before Naruto extended his arm and shot it toward the Kage box shocking all of the ninja present.

Orochimaru's eyes widened as he was the jutsu was heading for him in particular and he attempted to jump to dodge it, when he suddenly felt something holding his legs in place. He looked down and saw sand creeping up his body. Shock went through his system as he saw Gaara staring at him with his hand out. He managed to shed his skin just as the jutsu collided with him, sending the crowd into a frenzy at the sight of Orochimaru appearing out of the Kazekage's body. The Hiruzen and Itachi mobilized immediately before they were cut off by a giant bladed metal tail coming from one of the guards and the other shed his cloak and charged Itachi while in a demonic form, revealing himself as Kimimaro as a he swung with a bone blade, causing the Uchiha to jump back. Suddenly Jiraiya, Tsunade, and a cloaked figure appeared surrounding Orochimaru at a distance shocking him.

"So my entire old team plans to die today, do they?" Orochimaru said sadistically.

"The only one dying today is you snake!" Jiraiya shouted.

"You're going to finally die today Orochimaru. I'll make sure of it." Tsunade said. The cloaked figure was silent however.

"Really now. How about this. Summoning jutsu!" And with that seven coffins appeared surrounding Orochimaru. Everyone tensed at the speed of the Edo Tensei, realizing he must have already prepared them before. Out of the caskets stepped Kakuzu, Hidan, Kisame, the man Itachi had killed, his name being Shinga, Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and a red haired woman.

"Grandfather… grand uncle?!" Tsunade shouted in anger.

"You sick bastard! I'll fucking kill you!" that's when Jiraiya and Naruto noticed it respectively, though for Naruto it was just barely. The red haired woman was Kushina Uzumaki.

"You… I'll rip your fucking head off!" Jiraiya shouted as he summoned Ma and Pa. Who appeared on his shoulders.

"No time to really explain. Undead zombies. Need senjutu." That was all Jiraiya had to say as they began gathering it for him.

Off to the side Itachi was easily dominating Kimimaro, while cursing the fact that he couldn't use his Susanoo to seal all of the Edo Tensei zombies.

Suddenly one hundred puppets shot into the air and began battling with Hiruzen, who was holding his own quite well.

Gaara himself joined the fray, appearing on the rooftop next to the zombies and began wrapping them in sand, though they all easily broke free.

"Tsunade, you've grown up, haven't you?" Hashirama asked striking a cord. Orochimaru smirked at her shaking body.

"Oh, as you see I've maintained their personalities… to make this more interesting." Orochimaru smirked. Kushina got a tick mark on her head.

"You asshole snake! When I get out of this I'm gonna rip your head off, dattebane!" Kushina shouted angrily.

Kisame and Hidan got vicious smiles on their faces as they laid their eyes on Itachi.

"Round two mother fucker!" they both charged before Kisame was sent flying back by a green blur.

"I shall be your opponent." Gai said seriously. Kakashi appeared in front of Hidan, stabbing him through the chest with a Raikiri.

"Careful we regenerate!" Tobirama shouted as he charged Jiraiya alongside Hashirama, Kakuza Shinga, and a complaining Kushina. Gaara erected a sand wall blocking them all as Naruto and Sasuke joined the battle.

"… you are gonna make me fight my own mother… I'll kill you!" Naruto shouted as his cloak glowed brighter.

"Na… Naruto? Is that you?! You're so grown up. I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you baby, I really wish it could have gone differently…" Kushina said with tears in her eyes. Naruto was shaking with rage as tears poured down his face. Sasuke too was enraged at this development. That's when it happened. Kushina charged Naruto.

"I can't stop myself Naruto! Watch out!" She shouted as chakra chains shot out of her body at him. Naruto barely moved in time, continuously dodging his mother, unwilling to fight her.

"Mom… I can't fight you! I can't!" Naruto said crying. Kushina too had tears running down her face. Sasuke, intent on ending this, charged Orochimaru before he was cut off by Shinga who was in a demonic form and was matching his strength almost.

"You can't win against me. Konoha is doomed! Kukukuku…" the snake Sannin laughed. His laughing stopped as snakes shout of the cloaked man's sleeve, catching him before he was thrown across the rooftop.

"What is this?!" Orochimaru shouted as the man's hood fell down revealing… Orochimaru.

"What… what madness is this?! It must be one of Itachi's genjutsu. Kai!" nothing happened as the clone smirked.

"You know, those cursed seals of ours are truly amazing. They make completely different minds for us, completely different bodies. I have decided that the leaf is worth protecting, rather than destroying.

The other Orochimaru stared in shock at this new development, fear echoing through his veins.

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During the month off, Sasuke had an idea. He would get rid of Anko's cursed seal and kill part of Orochimaru in the process.

Explaining to the girl that after dealing with Orochimaru several times he had figured out how to remove the seal. She was initially skeptical but accepted the help. Sasuke found Naruto during this time and employed his help with sage chakra. With their combined effort the forcefully dragged Orochimaru out of the seal, intent on killing him. That was until he bowed his head to Sasuke.

"What are you doing snake?"

"You know Sasuke, my cursed seal is truly and amazing thing. It seals part of me so tightly, that even you're brothers jutsu couldn't quite reach me. I was safe from its effects on the mind while in the seal. His jutsu doesn't actually start time over evidently, rather it warps time and space itself, reversing it to a certain point. An incredible technique might I add. The reason I am not fighting you is because I had been watching you fight Kabuto. I realized that he was emulating me, and that was a boring path. You however went against me and followed your own path. For once, I feel like watching the winds blow than being the wind itself. I won't serve you, but I will help you and the village if that is what you wish." Naruto and Sasuke were slightly surprised before accepting.

"Alright snake… we need your help killing… well you. Dattebayo." Naruto said while Sasuke nodded. Orochimaru looked blank before getting an interested smile on his face.

"This could be interesting kukukuku….." Orochimaru said.

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Jiraiya and Tsunade had as well as Itachi had been informed of this, and while skeptical and wary, had accepted the help. The other Orochimaru was now staring at his counterpart with fear in his eyes. Konoha's Orochimaru charged forward faster than the Akatsuki Orochimaru, while Jiraiya and Tsunade were barely holding off the three zombies, two of which were former Kage, who were attacking them. Sasuke appeared in between them while off to the side there was a burning Shinga screaming as he repetitively regenerated and burned again. Sasuke looked left to the Shodaime and right to the Nidaime. Taking a deep breath he summoned Susanoo, using the last vestiges of his chakra as he began shooting chakra arrows at the rapidly moving Kage's whilst Jiraiya and Tsunade were taking on Kakuzu, who was losing miserably, but kept regenerating. Soon all of the Konoha ninja began to tire, as they evenly matched the zombies.

"This is madness!" Akatsuki Orochimaru shouted as Konoha Orochimaru began to get the upper hand.

"You're just a shell of what I used to be fool. Before this is over, you will all be dead." Konoha Orochimaru had to duck as Gai was sent flying over his head by a regenerating Kisame who was now engaging Itachi. Kakashi was easily dominating the slow Hidan, and Naruto was still dodging his crying mother. Akatsuki's Orochimaru began losing his grip as Konoha Orochimaru started to dominate him. In his break of concentration there was sudden explosion of pure force nearly caving in the roof.

"Enough of these games. I'm getting a little pissed at these games." Hashirama said as he forced himself to stop attacking.

"I agree brother. I think it's time we put an end to this." Tobirama said as he too was physically holding himself back. Seeing their example chakra chains shot out of Kushina and she forced herself still. Akatsuki Orochimaru looked on in shock at the three ninja, as they resisted his will.

"You are a fool snake. You forgot I invented this jutsu!" Tobirama said as him and Hashirama forcefully made a hand seal, going against their explicit orders. Instantly they were freed from the Edo Tensei leaving a shaking Orochimaru with wide eyes, while Konoha Orochimaru grinned in excitement.

"Uzumaki. Make the hand seal quickly!" Tobirama shouted at Kushina. Nodding she forced her bodies programming to make the seal and she too was released. Now the snake was really scared, as he now had three undead Kage level ninja out of his control gunning for him.

"Hey snake! Remember what I said before? I wasn't fucking kidding dattebane!" Kushina shouted as chakra chains shot out at the snake, intent on ripping him to shreds. Just as they hit he shed his skin and disappeared off to the side.

"Sasori, we're leaving. Now." Sasori nodded, using his puppets as a distraction to vanish, and the snake melted into the ground leaving several undead Akatsuki members still fighting and a heavily bleeding and poisoned Hiruzen. After a few seconds all of the undead disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Well that ended relatively well." Hashirama joked as he flexed his hands.

"Brother we were summoned by that snake to destroy our village. I don't think that means it ended well." Tobirama chided.

"And what the hell is going on with there being two of you?" Kushina demanded as she walked over to Orochimaru.

"It's a complex story that I'm sure would go right over your head. So let's just say I'm on your side now." Orochimaru said as he extended his neck to dodge and angry punch from Kushina.

"What just happened?" Naruto asked the three zombies.

"It seems that the snake didn't understand the full extent of my brothers' technique, and didn't realize we knew how to break that control. We still aren't at full strength due to the fact that we are still undead though…" Hashirama pondered.

"I'm so glad I didn't hurt you Naruto, and it's so good to finally meet you! Dattebane!" Kushina cried as she hugged him. When she touched him, he felt a tug inside of him. Suddenly a small amount of chakra flowed out of into the woman, and the cracks along her skin began to disappear and her heart started beating.

"Wha…what just happened?! Are you alive?!" Jiraiya shouted as he ran over.

"It must have been that chakra me and Minato sealed into Naruto as a baby. It must have reacted with my chakra and came back. I don't know it brought me back though…"

"I have a theory, I never tested this with my jutsu due to the odd nature of this occurrence. Technically the chakra in you is fueled by the chakra of the other world of the dead. It's not our own, but mimics ours. If we come into contact with a fragment of our chakra, it reacts with the rest, and could possibly ignite our old chakra network, restoring out bodies, as our minds and souls are already present. Hashirama, let's test this. We did make this village, there should be some of your chakra in the trees and mine in the water. Let's go." Tobirama said with authority. The two vanished in different directions. A few moments later huge spikes of chakra were felt in both directions. Moments later a completely revived Hashirama and Tobirama appeared shocking everyone.

'Well then. It seems I've changed a bit much with this jump…' Itachi thought as events were now out of control for him. He had no idea what the next step would be. They now had ten Kage level ninja gathered in Konoha, all ready to fight to protect it. Tsunade had already gone to work with healing Hiruzen while the rest of them conversed, besides himself and Sasuke who were having similar thoughts.

'What's his next move…?' They thought together.

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"Explain yourself." The Deva path said to Obito while Konan guarded the door behind him.

"Fine. I'm not really Madara Uchiha. I was his disciple. He wanted me to bring about peace, so he sent me to find you, the one with the sages' eyes, to help me bring about peace. However, first, I need you to use the outer path to bring back Madara Uchiha, so that he can help us bring about peace."

"How can I trust that once I bring him back, you won't kill my weakened body?" Pain asked. Obito was contemplating this. Pain was still of use to him.

"I have an idea actually. I swear I won't kill you or allow him to kill you… on one condition. I need you to bring back the dead Akatsuki members, and give Orochimaru free reign away from hunting the Bijuu. We need him to collect bodies for the Edo Tensei, that way we can use stronger ninja to fight against that damn Itachi Uchiha. He's getting far too powerful for his own good." Obito said.

"…Very well. I will do it." Up in a tower a distance away, the real Nagato and Konan were sitting there. Nagato began performing the hand seals, and expelled a massive amount of chakra. Not enough to kill him, but weaken him severely. Standing in front of him was Madara Uchiha, Kisame Hoshigaki, Kakuzu, Shinga, and Hidan. Obito appeared in a swirl in the middle of the room.

"So it seems our plan worked Obito. I have returned. And I am actually in perfect condition." He said, flashing his Rinnegan, shocking Konan and the weakened Nagato.

"Wait, that's our real boss? Why don't we just kill the crippled fucker and take over?" Hidan said. He was suddenly blasted into a wall by an invisible force and peppered with paper shuriken.

"Just because I am weakened does not mean I can't kill you Hidan. Now leave me with the Uchiha. They have much explaining to do." Nagato said. The others left, Hidan grumbling.

"So how do you plan on achieving this peace you promised?" Nagato asked. Madara smirked as he sat on the ground.

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"Nagato you can't seriously believe that his plan is sane, can you?" Konan asked worriedly.

"… No. That is not peace. That is merely a lie that will leave the world under his control, his will. That is not the peace I desire. Not the peace he desired. The world will know peace through understand each other's pain alone." Nagato spoke, but even he wasn't sure in his words anymore after hearing what Madara planned to do.

"Nagato… maybe Jiraiya-sensei was right. Maybe we can find peace without destruction…" Konan thought out loud.

"… Possibly. The Akatsuki is no longer of any use to me. They are going down a path I refuse to follow. We are leaving." In a puff of smoke his six bodies, him, and Konan all disappeared.

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"It seems Nagato has betrayed us Obito. Find him and get his eyes for me." Madara said.

"I'll get it done Madara. I'm keeping the eyes though, got it old man?" Obito said with disrespect. Madara frowned at him before nodding. With that the rogue Uchiha disappeared.

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"Tsunade. I have a request. I need you to do two things. I have a severe disease that I am wondering if a medic of your skill can cure, or at least put into remission. I need one other thing," Itachi gave a glance to a partially blind Sasuke. Itachi pulled a jar out of his pocket containing his former eye.

"Place this and my blind eye into Sasuke, and transplant his eyes into mine. Keep my good eye in a jar for now." Itachi said shocking Sasuke and Tsunade.

"And what's the point of that procedure?" Tsunade asked slowly.

"It is part of the Uchiha bloodline. As we use the Mangekyou, our eyes deteriorate. If we swap eyes with someone else's Mangekyou, it fixes our vision, and allows usage without the cost of our eyesight." Itachi explained. Tsunade nodded at this and turned to Sasuke.

"Are you willing to do this procedure?" with a quick nod he accepted.

"Very well, we will start immediately. You won't be able to see for several days after this, remember that.

"Understood Tsunade-sama."

"I guess it's my duty Hokage-sama.

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Off in a small village in fire country Nagato had finished regaining his strength and was currently having his bodies guard the area while Konan guarded him. Suddenly Obito appeared in front of him.

"You know, I don't enjoy being betrayed very much. I'm going to have to ask for you to give me your eyes, and I might not kill you.

Nagato glared at him before a spike shot at Obito, however it just phased right through him. Nagato expected this, and went through hand seals, summoning his bodies into the room. Obito tensed up.

"It seems you forgot that despite my condition I can still summon these bodies whenever I want. Leave if you want to live. And don't come back." Nagato spoke calmly. Obito looked at each of the bodies and weighed his odds. Deciding he might not win this fight, he chose to retreat.

"I'd sleep with an eye open Nagato. I will get those eyes back traitor. Just you wait." Obito said, disappearing as quickly as he had appeared. Nagato sighed and looked at Konan.

"We need to find a hideout he doesn't know about. This will note bode well if Madara comes after me. I may be a god, but… he is beyond a god." Nagato spoke with slight fear, so miniscule not even a Hyuga would notice it.

"Of course Nagato. Let's go." She said as they began their trek onwards to safety.

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Authors note: Some crazy shit going on. I'm trying to make it interesting, but at the same time balanced and relatively plausible. I believe with a fully revived Madara with wood element, Rinnegan and Mangekyou sharingan, it's a fair fight for a while. Plus the Edo Tensei is about to get a lot more annoying. Read and review my friends.


	7. Chapter 6

Itachi Uchiha: Turning Back the Pendulum

Chapter 6

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The procedure had been a success. Itachi now had a full eternal Mangekyou as well as Sasuke. The two had gotten used to the eyes in a few days, and were now

back to normal life. Naruto and Kushina had been spending a lot of time together, Naruto telling stories of his recent battles, with her telling him about herself and his

father. Itachi had taken over as acting Hokage earlier than anticipated, taking on Hashirama, Tobirama, and Hiruzen as advisors. This left a bad taste in the mouth of

Danzo, who believed them all to be weak in their ways. Tobirama had been initially skeptical about serving an Uchiha, until speaking with the young man and realizing

he wasn't like the rest of the clan had been. Everything was peaceful for the time being. The citizens were rejoicing at the return of the Hokage's and their new leader.

Morale was at the highest it had ever been. All of the surrounding nations were in a state of fear that Konoha would try and use this new increase in power to take

over the elemental nations, however Itachi assured them that he only wished for peace. This led to some skepticism on most of the other Kage's part, but they

accepted it as a chance to survive.

Meanwhile, Nagato and Konan had seemingly fallen off the face of the earth, a fact which frustrated Obito to no end. Apparently the Akatsuki had been busier than

they initially had been, as they now had collected all but three of the Jinchuriki, something that concerned Itachi. They were moving too fast, Nagato had been firm in

believing that they needed to bide their time. Something had changed.

"I am worried about this news. The Akatsuki is growing bold with their recent actions. They aren't behaving as they were before… what has changed." Itachi spoke as

his advisors stood across from his desk. They were all pondering what could be going on when an urgent letter arrived for Itachi.

"They Akatsuki have made a move. They just destroyed Taki…" Itachi spoke, barely restraining his rage.

"Urgent news, Hoshigakure has been taken over!"

"Urgent news, Kirigakure has been attacked. They are requesting immediate aid." Another chunin said entering the room. Itachi sighed before putting his face in his

hands.

"Get me team seven." Itachi spoke calmly.

"Understood."

"Which issue do you intend to address first Itachi?" Hashirama asked the new Hokage. Itachi was silent for a moment before his eyes hardened.

"Kiri still has a chance. We will save them." Itachi said as team seven arrived.

"What do you need Itachi?" Sasuke asked.

"Kiri has been attacked by the Akatsuki. I am sending team seven to provide immediate back up. There's no telling what you will run into when you get there, so I

recommend you being extremely cautious. When you get there, report the situation and I will send in appropriate back up. Understood?"

"Understood." The four chorused.

"You are to leave immediately, to ensure Kiri's survival. Now go." Itachi said. The team left immediately and he sighed before looking out the window.

"Itachi, you mustn't worry. You will succeed. You have learned well to trust others strength. I believe you will make a great Hokage." Hiruzen spoke. Hashirama and

Tobirama were silently agreeing.

"I know… I just know that the Akatsuki are not to be trifled with." Itachi said quietly.

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Upon arriving in Kiri, team seven were horrified. Bodies were everywhere, those of white Zetsu clones, and of Kiri ninjas. Naruto began shaking in rage at the

destruction, Sakura looked disgusted, and Kakashi and Sasuke, while angered, maintained their composure. Suddenly there was a huge explosion in the distance.

Sounds of battle reached their ears and they were off.

As team seven plowed through the Zetsu clones, they arrived at the Kage tower, or what was left of it. Standing over a dying Mei was a person that sent fear into all

of team seven. There stood Madara Uchiha, alive and well. The man looked over his shoulder at team seven causing them to tense up. They saw the Rinnegan in his

eyes, staring through them.

"Sakura… we are going to make an opening. You go heal the Mizukage while we distract Madara. He's strong, but if we all work together we might win." Naruto said,

having witnessed the might of the elder Uchiha in person. Sakura nodded, terrified of the man who was radiating power.

"We have to hit him with very thing from the beginning. Ready? Let's go!" Naruto said as he donned his cloak. Madara stared in interest as Naruto and Sasuke

disappeared while Kakashi flipped up his head band and his eye transformed into the Mangekyou. The boys appeared on either side of Madara, each bearing their

signature jutsu, a Rasengan and a Chidori. Madara batted both of them away with ease, however he was surprised when reality around his body started to warp.

Looking at Kakashi he smirked slightly before disappearing from sight. Kakashi had no time to react as he was sent flying by Madara's fan slamming into his gut.

Madara sidestepped Sasuke's Chidori Nagashi, and ducked under Naruto's extended arm before he let out an inferno on the two. The two were unharmed as they

dodged in opposite directions. In his peripherals, Madara saw Sakura working on stabilizing the Mizukage. He took a step towards her before the three Konoha ninja

were upon him, each bearing their signature jutsu again. He swiped his fan, cutting the three Shinobi in half. He smirked before Naruto and Sasuke disappeared in

puffs of smoke while Kakashi turned into slighting sending a shock through Madara's system. The momentary lapse cost him as Naruto and Sasuke threw a black

flaming Rasenshuriken at him.

"Enough games." Madara said as his eyes turned into Rinnegans and he absorbed the jutsu like it was never there.

"Shit." Naruto said as he met Madara's eyes. The trio of Konoha ninja barely dodged as he shot out a wave of gravity at them. Madara disappeared, then appeared

again with his fist in Sasuke's face, before kicking Naruto flying. Kakashi met his charge with a Raikiri which too was absorbed by the powerful man.

"Kakashi sensei, don't bother using ninjutsu, this guy can absorb them!" Naruto shouted, as Sasuke too took in this information.

"The three of us are ninjutsu specialists… how are we supposed to fight him then?"

"You're not." Madara spoke. He made a simple hand seal as trees began filling the area, with giant roots attempting to skewer Naruto, Sasuke, and Kakashi. Kakashi

narrowed his eyes before he attempted to use his Kamui again. He warped reality around all of the trees and sent them to a different dimension, surprising Madara.

"You aren't as boring as I had anticipated. This could be fun." Madara said as Susanoo formed around him. The Konoha trio narrowed their eyes as they formulated a

plan.

"Naruto, we take care of this. Kakashi, you provide support. Ready?" Sasuke ordered.

"Let's do this! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted as he donned a full Bijuu mode. Kakashi shot back a couple of feet to provide support, while Sasuke formed Susanoo

around him.

"So you all want to play then? So be it." Madara said. He clamped his hands together, and then dread filled the area. The Susanoo became enormous in size.

"This is the final Susanoo. You won't win." Madara said with superiority.

"Shut up asshole! My name is Naruto Uzumaki! I am gonna be Hokage damn it! I won't lose to some wannabe like you! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted as Kurama began

making a Bijuu bomb.

"You remind me of Hashirama. That makes me want to kill you even more." Madara said as his final Susanoo swung its blade just as Naruto shot an enormous Bijuu

bomb at the man. The two attacks collided creating a large explosion. Sasuke capitalized upon this and began firing Amaterasu arrows at Madara.

"You are fools to think you can stand up to my might!" Madara shouted as he dodged all of the arrows, unharmed. Naruto was on the ground, bleeding profusely.

"Get… him outta the village… Sasuke…" Naruto mumbled. Sasuke nodded and engaged Madara in a taijutsu battle, one which he was easily overwhelmed during. Still,

he and Kakashi managed to drag the powerful Uchiha to the edge of the village.

"Enough." Madara said as he sent the duo flying with his gravity jutsu.

"You should all just give up. You don't stand a chance against me." Madara said again as he walked towards them. Suddenly he heard a screeching sound above him.

He looked up and his eyes widened in shock. Naruto was above him holding a Rasenshuriken larger than the Bijuu bomb had been. A clone of Naruto grabbed Sasuke

and Kakashi and disappeared off into the distance.

The Rasenshuriken took on a purple hue and the size increased exponentially. Sasuke realized what he was doing as he retreated and formed Susanoo. He shot an

Amaterasu arrow at the orb as Naruto threw it, igniting it with black flames. The resulting explosion was heard across the nation. The pillar of pure chakra that

engulfed the area could be seen for miles. Naruto hit the ground, covered in blood and panting as he stared at the epicenter of his attack. As the smoke cleared he

saw Madara and his heart sank. What he saw next shocked him. Madara was bleeding. Badly. He looked out of energy and he was panting and coughing up blood.

"You… you are going to die now Uzumaki. No one has hurt me this badly in ages." Madara said, a bit of excitement in his tone at the fight he had just experienced. He

began to stalk towards the downed Uzumaki when a figure appeared in between them.

"Shinra Tensei." The figure spoke as Madara was sent flying.

"You? It's no surprise that you turned traitor. You are weak." Madara said as he landed on his feet before falling on one knee.

"You seem to be the weak one here. I will kill you, you who perverts my belief in peace. Prepare to die." The man said as five more figures appeared, each bearing

orange hair and multiple black piercings. Madara frowned as he was facing the six paths of Pain.

'I could easily kill him at full strength, but after the Uzumaki's attack… perhaps retreat is the best option.' Madara thought as he disappeared in an instant, using all of

his strength to escape the powerful ninja. Pain looked at the spot Madara had stood before looking over his shoulder at Naruto. Naruto himself had passed out from

blood loss. For a moment, Pain considered killing him to stop the Akatsuki's plans for now, but he decided against it. The boy was strong, and may be of use in killing

Madara. Sensing the other ninja approaching, Pain took his leave.

"Naruto!" Sasuke shouted as he saw the bleeding form that was his best friend. He prayed he wasn't dead as he ran for the boy. Checking for a pulse he let out a sigh

of relief that his friend wasn't dead. Yet he realized. Just as this thought went through his head Sakura ran beside him and began to work on stabilizing him as a

weakened Mei walked up next to a frowning Kakashi.

"I cannot thank you all enough for saving my village from that monster. How were you able to defeat him Hatake?" Mei asked.

"I wasn't the one to beat him. It was Naruto." Kakashi said staring at his downed student. Mei looked surprised before she too stared at the boy.

"He saved my village…? How powerful is that boy Kakashi?" Mei asked. Kakashi stared at the sky for a moment before answering.

"Stronger than both of us." Mei looked at the boy in contemplation.

"Maybe he can save us all."

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"You went up against who?!" Hashirama shouted as Itachi eyes darkened at team seven's report.

"It was Madara Uchiha, alive and well. I don't know how, but it was definitely him. I don't know why he retreated, but we threw everything we had at him and he still

wouldn't stay down. He's powerful, and he's a part of the Akatsuki." Kakashi reported.

"My old friend is back then… I'll have to take care of him myself. I must say though, you are all very impressive for having pushed him as far as you did."

"It wasn't me that pushed him. It was my students, Sasuke and Naruto that managed to put him on the ropes. I was just a support to them." Kakashi said with a hint

of pride. Tobirama, Hiruzen, and Hashirama looked surprised at this. Itachi however expected this news. He knew that Naruto and Sasuke were strong before, but now

they were nearly unstoppable if they worked together. Suddenly the door was slammed open as Kushina stormed in.

"I heard my son almost died on his last mission! How did that happen?! I want to know why he was sent up against someone that strong, dattebane!" Kushina

shouted at Itachi who merely gave her a blank stare.

"Naruto is without a doubt one of the strongest ninja we have right now. If he couldn't face the threat, I doubt anyone short of me or my advisors would stand a

chance. I have faith that your son is strong enough to face threats like that, evidenced by the fact that he not only survived, but managed to push back a stronger

opponent." Itachi said calming the fiery redhead. She huffed before sitting down in one of the chairs in the room.

"So what's next? You can't expect him to fight all of these battles himself, can you?" Kushina asked.

"No one can shoulder all of the burdens themselves. He will have to fight, yes, but he won't be doing it alone. I expect everyone to work together to defeat this new

threat." Itachi said knowingly. They were interrupted as an injured Konoha Shinobi stumbled into his office.

"Hokage-sama, I bring news of the front in Hoshigakure. They are completely under siege by the Akatsuki. I was left alive to deliver a message for you from their

leader. He said 'You had your chance Itachi. I will destroy this very world until I get what I want. Give me the Jinchuriki and this can all end. You have to decide soon, or

this whole world will burn.' Hokage-sama I'm so sorry… shit!" the man yelled at the end as several hidden explosive tags lit ablaze on his body. Tobirama acted in an

instant and teleported the man out of the room and into the sky before teleporting back to the room. Itachi's eyes widened before his face turned cold.

"I think it's about time we end all of this bloodshed." Itachi said. Kushina looked infuriated, Hashirama was shaking in rage, and Tobirama and Hiruzen had cold looks

on their faces.

"What is your next move Hokage-sama?" Hashirama asked. Itachi looked out his window.

"We bring the fight to them. Get me the Sannin." Itachi said as a plan formulated in his head.

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"Nagato, why would you risk dying just to try and fight that monster?! If you die, how can we bring peace to this world?!" Konan shouted at the crippled man. He

stared at her calmly before replying in a monotone voice.

"The only way true peace can exist is if that man is dead. He wishes to destroy this world, not bring peace to it. Look at the destruction they all bring. They have no

desire for true peace… the amount of death they have caused has caused even me to pause. Perhaps destruction isn't the answer. After seeing what they have

caused, I realized something. All we were doing was recreating the war and destruction that we sought to end as children. Yahiko wouldn't have wanted this, would

he…? Perhaps there is another answer to peace. I will find it, even if it kills me." Nagato said with a little conviction at the end. Konan stared at him in surprise before a

small smile formed on her face.

"If you intend to fight to find peace, then I will stay by your side to the last breath." Konan said.

"Let us depart then. We need to end this fight sooner than later if we want to stop this destruction." Nagato said as he and Konan disappeared.

Off in Hoshigakure, the six paths of Pain were staring over the village which was overrun by white Zetsu and headed by what appeared to be a man with cracked skin

and black sclera. This caused a moment of hesitation in Nagato, as he contemplated the meaning behind this. Not letting the thought hold him for more than a moment,

he began his assault. In an instant Asura path threw Animal path into the air high above the village. The second Animal path landed inside the village, it summoned all

of the other paths. They all shot off in different directions, intent on taking the village back. The white Zetsu stood no chance as they were torn apart by the powerful

Rinnegan wielders paths. A few minutes into the destruction and a large dark-skinned man with cracked skin and black sclera landed in front of Deva path. The Deva

path stared down the man who had a blank look on his face as he remained silent. Suddenly his fingers lit up with lighting and he charged at blinding speeds.

Not one to be scared by such an assault, Deva path shot the former Raikage back with a wave of gravity. Or so he attempted. The man was stopped for a moment

before he broke through the force and nearly skewered Deva path. Pain narrowed his eyes at this.

'It seems I will need to work a little harder if I intend to win this fight.' Nagato thought as he stared at the again charging man. Deva continued to dodge, each time by

a little less until the faster man started to clip him. Suddenly Asura path shot several missiles at him knocking the man flying. Suddenly the man began to regenerate

causing Nagato to realize this was Orochimarus doing.

"So he's just a zombie with no thought process. This will be interesting." Nagato spoke as the six paths surrounded the Edo Tensei zombie. The zombie charged

recklessly at the Deva path again. Nagato could have smirked at how easy this had just become. The plan in his head would be flawless against someone as reckless

as this zombie. Just as the former Raikage got within feet of Deva path, he froze him in his spot with his Shinra Tensei. The combination attack began. Asura path blew

the zombie off of his feet with its missiles, then Preta path jumped in front of the zombie and sapped the chakra out of its finger blade. Last, human path appeared

behind him and placed a hand on its head, then proceeded to rip out its soul.

The construct began to disappear as Nagato stared at the scene through his paths. That fight, while easy, had been slightly taxing. Suddenly Deva path sensed an

oncoming attack. Barely reacting in time, Deva dodged a Rasengan from above, a slash from a blade to the left, however he was punched from the other side, sending

him skyrocketing into a building. Gathering itself, Deva path and the other paths of Pain jumped in formation in front of their attackers. Standing across from them was

the Legendary Sannin, in all of their glory. Jiraiyas eyes widened as he laid eyes upon the Deva path.

"Ya…Yahiko?! But you are dead! And how do you have Nagatos Rinnegan?" Jiraiya demanded as he stared down the mighty Uzumaki. Nagato didn't even bat a lash at

seeing his former sensei.

"That is none of your concern sensei. I must leave now, I have other matters to attend to." Nagato spoke through the Deva path. Jiraiyas eyes hardened while

Orochimaru smirked and Tsunade glared at Deva path.

"You are part of Akatsuki… are you the one who took over this village…? Answer me!" Jiraiya shouted as he glared at his former student. Nagato stared for a moment

before responding.

"I was once a part of Akatsuki. I was their leader. However, after realizing the true desires of its members, I have decided that they are an obstacle to peace. An

obstacle I intend to destroy." Deva path spoke.

"And we are to believe you have had this change of heart? I highly doubt all of your beliefs could be inverted like this." Orochimaru said with a frown.

"You've killed six Jinchuriki and caused the deaths of hundreds, even thousands! And you expect us to just believe you are turning over a new leaf?!" Tsunade shouted

at the man. Nagato again didn't react to this accusation, merely responding in his monotone.

"It does not matter what you do or do not believe. I am going to bring peace to this world. How I do it is of my own choice. However, if you or your village stand in the

way of peace… I will destroy you all." Nagato said as all of his paths disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Fuck." Jiraiya said as they looked around at the village before they began to exterminate the rest of the Zetsu clones.

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It all happened in an instant. A meteor appeared, large enough to completely block out the sky. No one had nay chance to react as it crashed upon Iwagakure. Even

the Tsuchikage, Onoki couldn't react in time to outright stop it. All he could do was prolong its crash for a few brief moments. In an instant the village was crushed,

killing nearly every citizen and ninja in the village and fatally wounding the rest. Onoki himself survived, albeit barely. He looked up at a figure bearing down on him.

"You are still alive I see. It seems that your time is up brat. You are as weak as I left you all of those years ago." Madara said. Onoki didn't have time to respond as Madara stomped on his throat, collapsing it. Onoki choked and gagged as he gargled his own blood before his life began to fade away.

"This should send a message to Konoha." Madara said as he left the scene of disaster.

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"Iwa has been destroyed by a giant meteor. The likelihood of this occurring as a natural disaster is improbable. It seems as if Akatsuki is trying to send us a message.

We cannot keep sitting here as they destroy the world. For every accomplishment, another is destroyed. Madara is on a rampage, and no one seems to be able to

catch him, let alone stop him." As Itachi was saying this the world began to swirl in the corner of the office. Itachi jumped up in preparation while the former Kage all

tensed up. Out of the spiral came Obito, his mask and cloak in place. Tobirama appeared in an instant in front of him, piercing his skull with a kunai. Or so he thought,

as he merely slipped through the man. Obito gave a short chuckle before he looked towards Itachi.

"I warned you of what would happen if you didn't agree. The world is falling apart now, and there is nothing you can do to stop it, unless you intend to give me the

Kyuubi. We might be able to work out a deal then." Obito said childishly. Itachi glared at him, knowing full well that no attacks would work on him at the moment.

"You intend to destroy this world? For the sake of what, control? Destruction? You are the cause of war and destruction. You are taking the cowards way to peace. I

will end you if intend to continue with this path." Hashirama said as he glared at the man, his killing intent was enough to make even Obito pause for a brief moment.

"You were once a Konoha ninja Obito… why are you doing this? Where has your will of fire gone?" Hiruzen asked the man. Obito laughed sadistically at this.

"All of you Hokage were fools. Weak fools. You tried so hard for peace, yet you failed. You all died miserably. Me? I will never die. I will bring about peace, I will end this

world of winners and losers. If you think you stand a chance, look at Iwa. I made an example out of them. If you continue to resist, I will make an example out of

everyone in this world. I hope you make the right decision Itachi. You've already failed once as I recall." Suddenly killing intent filled the room at a level none of them

thought even possible as Itachi leveled a glare on the cringing Uchiha.

"You think you can come to my village, my office, and threaten me?! And you think that you have any right to bring up my family?! I promise you this, I will end you.

Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but look at my allies compared to yours. Who do you think will win this war?" Itachi said as Obito glared at him through his

mask.

"You have been warned Itachi. We will see who is stronger when our time to fight comes." Obito said as he faded into the ground before his chakra signature

disappeared outright.

The four Hokage remained silent as they all digested this information.

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"This is getting more out of control than the first time this war happened…" Naruto said to Sasuke as the two were sparring.

"I will admit, I didn't expect for things to get this out of control. I have faith that Itachi will figure out something. For now, we need to get stronger. We need to end

this." Sasuke replied as the two continued to spar. The two had been training with each other every day while Sakura had been taken on as an apprentice by

Tsunade. Kakashi had been personally training with the former Kage to get his strength back up to its former level. Everyone was training as hard as they could,

everyone was preparing for war after news of Iwagakures fall reached them. Every village still intact was preparing for battle. Akatsuki had effectively declared war on

the entirety of the Elemental Nations.

Morale was high for Konoha, as they had some of the strongest ninja in the world on their side. However Akatsuki always seemed to be one step ahead of them. They

had the upper hand somehow, and they didn't seem to be intending to give it up anytime soon. That's when it happened. News of Kirabis near capture at the hands of

Akatsuki. Next was news that they had nearly sealed the entirety of Shukaku, leaving Gaara barely alive. It seemed that the Akatsuki had a portion of every Bijuus

chakra except for the Kyuubi. Everyone was furious, the Akatsuki were one step away from winning this war. This could not be allowed. The true war would begin

soon.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"We must bring the fight to them Konan. We need to end this now. Before it goes any further, and more war is spread. First, I have a plan. We need to go to Konoha."

Nagato spoke as he prepared to leave with Konan.

"What do you need there Nagato?"

"The Kyuubi." Nagato replied as they disappeared into the darkness.

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It was a peaceful day in Konoha. Nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Akatsuki had been unusually quiet as of late. Suddenly everything went to hell. It began to

rain in the village. Not just rain, it was pouring. Suddenly and orange haired man landed in the center of the village. In a giant puff of smoke five other figures

appeared in the village as well as several giant animals. The figures all scattered, not causing any real harm, merely serving as a distraction.

The ninja of the village were in a state of disarray as they were invaded by several enemy ninja and summons. The four Hokage acted immediately and were scattered

through the village in moments. The elite jonin of the village were off in a heartbeat after the enemy ninja. Kushina was already fighting off several of the summoned

creatures while the Sannin had all pulled out summons of their own to fight back. That's when they saw it above the village. A giant bird with Rinnegan eyes. On its

back, was a crippled man being supported by a blue haired woman. The bird dived into the village, intent on finding its target.

Naruto barely had time to react as a bird crashed into where he had just been standing. Looking up he saw a figure he hadn't seen in ages. He didn't have time to let

the nostalgia kick in though as he was pulled toward the man by an invisible force. He barely dodged the black rods that shot at him before he donned his cloak. He

attempted to speak but suddenly missiles were shot at him which he batted away with his cloak. Not giving him a chance to react, Nagato shot Naruto flying with his

Shinra Tensei. Suddenly a giant three headed dog was bearing down upon Naruto, which he barely sent flying with a giant Rasengan.

"I don't want to kill you Nagato! Stop fighting me!" Naruto shouted causing Konan and Nagato to pause.

"I don't know how you know that name. However you are necessary for the downfall of Madara Uchiha." Nagato said as he pulled Naruto towards him again. Nagato

then summoned his bodies from running around the village. Hey all appeared around Naruto, and charged him engaging in a taijutsu fight with him. Naruto summoned

several clones and had them fight off the paths. This proved futile though, as they were easily mowed through.

"Take this!" Jiraiya shouted as he appeared above his former student with a giant Rasengan in his hand. Nagato glanced up for a second before he absorbed the

jutsu. He then shot a wave of gravity around him, sending the Sannin flying. Orochimaru attempted to pierce him from a distance with Kusanagi. This too was blocked

as Nagato shot a black rod out of his sleeve at the incoming blade, knocking it off its course. Tsunade charged him but she too was blocked as paper shuriken

bombarded her, each one exploding when they got near her.

Kakashi attempted to hit him with a Raikiri, but he was blocked by Preta path and then sent flying by Deva path. All of the ninja backed off staring in awe at the raw

power of the man in front of them.

"What do you want?" Tsunade asked.

"The Kyuubi." Nagato replied monotonously.

"Fuck you!" Kushina shouted as she appeared behind him with chakra chains sprouting from her back. Nagato looked surprised as he barely deflected the chains with

his gravity. Kushina shot through the air, barely righting herself and landed on her feet. Konan actually looked slightly nervous as they were surrounded by several S-

rank ninja. The fear became apparent when the four Hokage appeared surrounding them. Nagato stared calmly at all of the ninja surrounding him.

"Konan… leave." Nagato spoke. Konan swiveled towards him with wide eyes.

"You can't expect me to really leave you like this, can you?!" Konan shouted.

"I said leave. I need to go all out. If you are here, you will get hurt, possibly even die. Now leave." Nagato spoke calmly, though there was a hint of pleading in his

voice. Konan looked like she wanted to argue but she nodded and grew paper wings before flying into the sky and out of the village with tears forming in her eyes as

she feared for her last friends life.

Nagato glanced around him as his bodies took a defensive position around him.

"What are you doing here Akatsuki? You couldn't possibly believe you could withstand the entirety of Konoha by yourself, could you?" Hashirama asked as he stared

into the Rinnegan eyes of Nagato. Nagato remained silent as he looked at his surroundings.

Maito Gai, Kakashi Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi, Kurenai Yuhi, Anko Mitarashi, several Anbu, the Legendary Sannin, the Hokage, Kushina Uzumaki, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki, an

Uchiha, and several other ninja. Nagato knew there was a good chance he wouldn't come out of this alive. But he needed to take that risk to attempt to defeat the

Akatsuki. Everything went to hell in a second. They were all upon him at once. Nagato barely had time to react as his paths attempted to defend him. It was a

hopeless endeavor as the Shodaime began sending trees and roots towards the elder Uzumaki. Testing his luck he had Preta path attempt to absorb the chakra of the

trees. It worked as the roots withered and decayed as the chakra was absorbed by him. The Nidaime appeared right in front of him, intending to cut his throat, but he

was sent flying by an invisible force. Chakra chains shot at him, but those too were absorbed. Gai, Kakashi, and Lee all appeared surround him to attempt to use

taijutsu on him. Nagato barely sent them flying in time. Jiraiya appeared above with a Rasengan while Orochimaru and Tsunade charged either side of him, fully

intending to kill him in one shot. Nagatos eyes narrowed before human path jumped in front of him and round house kicked Tsunade into Orochimaru, knocking them

both off course, while Preta path absorbed the Rasengan and Deva path kicked Jiraiya to the side. As Deva path landed he spawned two black rods and engaged the

two Sarutobi in close combat.

Nagato began to pant slightly as the exertion was slowly catching up with him. Looking around him he saw all of the Konoha ninja preparing to charge him. He

narrowed his eyes before shouting.

"Enough! Shinra Tensei!" a shockwave shot through the area sending every Konoha ninja flying as it tore up the very landscape in the area. The next five seconds

seemed to last forever to everyone as they all crashed into different directions. As the five second mark hit, Nagato pulled in Naruto as he started coughing up blood

from overexertion. Naruto couldn't react as he crashed into Nagato. Suddenly the red haired man began to absorb his Bijuu cloak. This had an instant effect that

shocked everyone. His body began to heal, and he lost his crippled appearance as he regained a youthful appearance. Suddenly his face went blank for a moment. A

look of realization came across his face as he stood on his own two feet for the first time in years. Looking around he saw everyone preparing to hit him again. He took

a deep breath, and as he exhaled it, he shouted.

"Shinra Tensei!" everyone was sent flying as an enormous explosion of force hit all of them. He took this opportunity to escape on giant bird summon with his bodies.

"Well that was odd. He attacked then just left?" Kushina said as everyone regained their bearings.

"He wanted the Kyuubi chakra I think. It healed him from what it looked like. Whose side is he on anyway?" Sasuke asked to no one in particular.

"He's on his own side. He's a wild card in the battle, he will destroy anyone who stands in his way of peace. That's what he said before." Jiraiya said solemnly. Itachi

nodded thinking about what had just happened. If he absorbed the Kyuubi's chakra there was a good chance he had gotten his memories back as well. If he did, it

would be a very powerful ally on their side. Naruto had similar thoughts as he realized that the other Uzumaki would most likely be on their side this time.

"Double up patrols, Akatsuki may take this as a sign that we are weakened due to the attack." Itachi ordered. Everyone nodded and went back to their posts.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Orochimaru… you've really out done yourself this time." Obito said as he looked at the caskets in front of him. There was dozens of them.

"With all of the clones you've given me, this was easy to do with enough time. They may have powerful Shinobi on their side. But we have an undead army now."

Orochimaru said as he cackled. Obito smiled viciously under his mask as he thought of his imminent victory.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Authors Note: sorry it took so long, full time sucks. Anyway, I'm hoping I'm not disappointing anyone or making them lose their desire to read this, I know its getting a

little crazy now, but I'm hoping I am keeping it interesting and balanced. I try and make it as realistic as possible, but I still want to make it exciting. Also, if you think I

made Nagato too overpowered in this chapter, you have to remember he is one of the most balanced ninja in the series. He is smart, powerful, has a lot of chakra, and

is capable of brushing off most attacks with his abilities. He can absorb the chakra out of things, making them practically useless, he can repel most physical attacks if

you don't time it right, he has weaponry, he can use multiple bodies, revive those bodies, has strong taijutsu skills, and has the ability to use different summons.

Personally I believe one of the only ways to beat him in a straight fight is to use superior tactics and cunning. I do believe that in an extended one on one fight with

the Shodaime, Nidaime, Itachi, Naruto, Sasuke, or Madara, he would have a 50/50 chance of losing, the odds being less in his favor with the older ones. Anyway,

enough of my spiel, enjoy reading and I'll try and have a chapter done next week.


	8. Chapter 7

Itachi Uchiha: Turning Back the Pendulum

Chapter 7

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The next year went on quietly. The Akatsuki had made no significant moves. Nagato had disappeared off the face of the earth, and the Konoha ninja had been going

on regular missions. It seemed as if the Akatsuki had gone into hiding and were waiting for something.

"Hokage-sama there is news of a battle going on at the edge of Fire country. The news implies it is Madara Uchiha. He is leading an army of ninja that just don't seem

to die. Everything we hit them with, they just get back up. It looks like they are heading towards the village!" Kotetsu said as he reported to the Hokage. Itachi's eyes

darkened at this news. Get me the Shodaime, Nidaime, the Sannin, and Naruto and Sasuke. The Sandaime is to take my place temporarily while I lead this squad to

the battle field. I am going to take two squads of Anbu as well." Itachi said as he stood up.

"Understood Hokage-sama!" Kotetsu replied as he disappeared to gather the summoned ninja.

'I hope we can win this fight. We need to put them down.' Itachi thought.

After the team was assembled they all departed at full speed to the location of the enemy army, prepared to fight to protect this world. As they rested in a clearing a

spiral formed in the air and several ninja appeared out of it, attacking the Konoha ninja immediately. Leading the charge was the dead Tsuchikage, Onoki, who

attempted to kill them all with his dust based jutsu. The Konoha ninja scattered as several undead ninja charged them, none of them being worth any note. The fight

was brutal, with the Konoha ninja easily dominating due to their raw power. However the zombies didn't die. After roughly and hour of nonstop combat the zombies

retreated leaving a group of winded ninja.

"What was the point of that… wait… shit!" Naruto shouted as suddenly Madara and Obito landed in front of them, as well as Onoki and the Nidaime Tsuchikage as well

as several lower class Edo Tensei ninjas.

"It looks like you're a bit worn out, aren't you Itachi?" Obito said humorously, though one could feel the vindictiveness in his voice. Itachi leveled a glare on him.

"I beat you once. You think I can't do it again?" Itachi said as his eyes turned into Mangekyou sharingan. Sasuke copied his action, Hashirama went into sage mode,

Naruto donned his Bijuu cloak, Jiraiya summoned the elder toads and went into sage mode, and the rest of the group tensed up.

"This will be fun Hashirama. I've wanted a rematch for a long time. Hopefully you don't disappoint." Madara said in excitement. Hashirama stared solemnly at his former

friend as he prepared to fight.

"You don't have to do this Madara. You can stop now, and no one has to die." Hashirama said. Madara merely laughed at him as he activated his Rinnegan.

"You think you can beat us? You got another thing coming asshole! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted as he formed a Rasenshuriken in his hand and threw it at Madara, who

merely absorbed the jutsu.

"Fuck… forgot about that." Naruto said. Sasuke and Itachi nodded at each other and shot Amaterasu at Obito, who sent them to his pocket dimension before shooting

them back at the Konoha ninja. They all scattered and hell broke loose. Trees formed everywhere, Rasengans were sent flying, Susanoos formed, craters were

created, the landscape was changed, and there was the sounds of battle present in the sky. Both Nidaime were fighting each other, one teleporting around, the other

trying to disintegrate the first. The Shodaime and the elder Uchiha were fighting. Naruto, Sasuke, and the Sannin were fighting the zombies while Itachi attempted to

land a hit on Obito. The Konoha ninja, already tired from the earlier fight, were quickly losing ground.

"Itachi duck!" Jiraiya shouted as Madara attempted to kill him with a swipe towards his blind spot. Jiraiya threw Itachi out of the way, barely avoiding the blade himself.

Suddenly Obito was upon him with branches sprouting out of his arm. Jiraiya held his own fine against the younger ninja, but suddenly he was knocked flying from a

blank faced Onoki. He righted himself and dodged the dust attack before charging the zombie. He destroyed half of him with a Rasengan, spun on his heel and swiped

Obito's legs out from under him. Jiraiya decided enough was enough and with ma and pa began destroying all of the zombies over and over again. He started to get

confident that they could win. Everyone had gained the upper hand thanks to his efforts. The fight was turning in their favor now.

Obito jumped to his feet and charged that powerful Sannin. Jiraiya formed a Rasengan and met his charge. Just as he was about to hit, Obito phased through him, and

then with a backhand swing pierced the Sannin's chest with one of the branches he had grown. The battle seemed to stop for a moment as Jiraiya began to cough up

blood. Obito wrenched the branch from his chest and let the Sannin fall. All of the Konoha ninja froze as they stared at Jiraiya's form as it fell.

"No… no!" Naruto shouted as he watched his father figure die before his eyes. Tsunade felt tears come to her eyes while Orochimaru's face became cold. The rest of

the ninja present stopped to witness the death of one of the greatest seals masters to ever exist. Obito laughed sadistically at this.

"Naruto Uzumaki… do you see what your resistance has caused? But you don't have to worry. If you give yourself up, the eternal Tsukuyomi will put us in a dream

world where he will still live." Obito said as Naruto felt himself go numb. Suddenly Obito was sent flying as Jiraiya forced himself to his feet and planted a Rasengan into

his back, shocking everyone.

"Don't listen to him Naruto… you just need the guts… to never give up!" Jiraiya said as he coughed up blood. Suddenly his hair extended and tore through all of the

zombies while he charged Madara with an oversized Rasengan. Madara put up his Susanoo to block the attack, but Jiraiya pumped the rest of his chakra into it,

sending the ancient Uchiha flying as he shattered the Susanoo. The zombies all converged on Jiraiya as they regenerated. Just as they were upon him he formed one

last simple Rasengan. Spinning in a circle, he tore through each zombies face, knocking them all flying back. Obito and Madara got to their feet and stared at the man in

interest.

"How is it you're still alive? How are you still fighting?" Obito asked. Jiraiya laughed as he coughed up more blood.

"Because… as long as I have someone to protect, I will never give up!" Jiraiya shouted as he stumbled over to the younger Uchiha. Obito smirked and went to punch

the dying man. This was stopped by an extremely angered Naruto and Tsunade who nearly crushed him in one strike as he barely phased out of it. Obito didn't get

long to rest as Orochimaru was on him with Kusanagi attempted to tear him to shreds, the anger evident on his face.

Madara moved to help his apprentice, but Hashirama, Sasuke, and Itachi cut him off and began engaging him. Tobirama was still fighting the Nidaime Tsuchikage and

was now holding off Onoki as well. Just as they were pushing the Akatsuki entered the area. Kisame and Hidan landed next to Madara while Kakuzu and the other

Orochimaru landed across from Tsunade, Naruto, and Konoha's Orochimaru.

"Round fucking two you cocksucker!" Hidan shouted as he charged Itachi. Sasuke attempted to light him ablaze with his Amaterasu, but Kisame swiped his sword at it,

absorbing the chakra into his blade.

"None of that this time Uchiha. I'm gonna enjoy shredding you to ribbons." Itachi shot forward and attempted to kick Kisame across the face, however the fish-like man

ducked under it and swiped at Itachi's leg. Itachi hopped over the blade and threw several kunai at Kisame in mid-air. Kisame tilted his head sideways, dodging the

blades. The two separated and Kisame stared at the Uchiha's feet.

"None of that genjutsu this time Uchiha." Kisame said with a vicious grin. Itachi remained calm as he formulated a plan. Kisame didn't give him a chance though as he

charged at full speeds with his blade. Itachi dodged, only to see Hidans scythe coming in his direction. Sasuke appeared between the two, wielding a katana which he

used to block Hidan.

"You're fights with me." Sasuke said coldly as he engaged in a kenjutsu battle with the psychotic immortal. He easily had the upper hand, parrying every attack Hidan

threw at him while causing several deep gashes on the older man.

"I'm gonna end you real quick Uchiha!" Kisame shouted at Itachi as he began to fuse with his blade. He moved at astronomical speeds that Itachi barely kept up with.

The shark-like man was bearing down on him with what seemed like and endless flurry of attacks. Suddenly Kisame made a hand seal and a giant bubble of water

formed around the duo. Itachi realized he couldn't breathe in the bubble and sought a way out. Kisame laughed and began striking the Uchiha at high speeds in the

bubble. The fight seemed to be going sour for Itachi as Kisame easily had the upper hand in the bubble. Suddenly the water around Kisame began to move. Kisame

looked around him in interest as Itachi began to drown. Suddenly the bubble burst and the water shot in a torrent at Kisame.

Standing in front of the water was Tobirama with a cold look on his face.

"You think your mastery of water jutsu is superior to mine? Fool." Tobirama said as he charged the downed Akatsuki member.

"Take care of the Edo Tensei ninja!" Tobirama ordered as he appeared next to Itachi. He disappeared again and appeared behind Kisame. Kisame swiveled on his heel

and swung at the former Hokage. The Nidaime merely disappeared and appeared again behind Kisame, kicking him into the distance.

"I will end this real quick shark." Tobirama mocked lightly. Kisame growled as he disappeared at high speeds, engaging Tobirama.

Meanwhile the other Edo Tensei ninja were being held back by Anbu. Naruto was attacking Obito in pure rage, the Orochimarus were fighting to a near stalemate, and

Tsunade was slowly getting the upper hand on Kakuzu. Sasuke was dancing around Hidan, easily dominating him. Madara and Hashirama had long since disappeared

into the distance, though the sounds of an epic battle could be heard throughout the land. Itachi looked around at the carnage and began to freeze up slightly as

flashbacks of the war hit him. Steeling his resolve he activated his Susanoo and charged the two dead Tsuchikage. The fight was a close one, though with Susanoo

Itachi managed to not sustain any injuries. Suddenly Obito was sent flying as Naruto slammed a Rasengan into him.

Obito stood up and chuckled.

"Tell me Uzumaki, do you know what happens when a Jinchuriki loses their Bijuu? They die. However under the odd circumstance that they do not die, they remain

tainted by the demons chakra, causing them to retain some of the chakra." Obito said mirthfully.

"What's your point asshole?!" Naruto shouted at the older man.

"You really are dense. What former Jinchuriki is still alive? Which one do we still need?" Obito said. A look of realization appeared on Naruto's face. Rage filled his soul

as he roared at the man.

"Don't you fucking dare!" Obito laughed sadistically as he began to disappear. Naruto charged him with a Rasengan just barely missing the man. Suddenly the sounds

of battle in the distance stopped. All of the ninja present disappeared in a puff of smoke leaving the Konoha ninja baffled. A few moments later Hashirama appeared

heavily injured.

"The masked man appeared and Madara summoned all of the other ninja to him somehow. Then they all disappeared into that vortex of the masked mans." Hashirama

spoke. Fear rose in Narutos soul as he heard this.

"We need to get back to the village, now!" Naruto shouted. Tobirama narrowed his eyes realizing what he meant.

"Everyone, grab onto me. I don't know if this will work with so many of you, but I'm going to try and get us back to the village as soon as possible." Everyone nodded

and grabbed onto him, with the exception of Tsunade who wanted to take care of Jiraiya's body. Suddenly the group disappeared from the clearing.

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The village was in a state of chaos. In the center of the village the Akatsuki had appeared. There was no chance to prepare before destruction set in. This was their

plan the entire time, to destroy the village while its strongest fighters were missing. There was currently a standoff going on now. Kakashi, Gai, Kurenai, Asuma, Anko,

Genma, Yugao, and Hiruzen were staring down Kisame, Kakuzu, Hidan, Orochimaru, Obito, Madara, and the Edo Tensei ninja. The leaf ninja were tense, knowing they

were heavily out manned at the moment. Hidan made the first move, then chaos ensued. He charged the group, roaring battle cry. He didn't make it more than five

feet before his shadow was caught.

"Asuma-sensei, go!" Shikamaru shouted as he struggled to maintain the jutsu. Asuma didn't hesitate as he charged with his trench knives, decapitating the immortal.

Gai opened the sixth gate instantly and charged Kisame, who barely blocked with Samehada. Orochimaru charged into the fray only to be met by Anko and Yugao.

"You asshole… you ruined my life. Today you will die!" Anko shouted as she futilely engaged the former Sannin in a taijutsu battle, one which he easily dominated her

at.

"Kurenai, you and Genma take care of Kakuzu… me and the masked man have some business with each other." Kakashi said coldly. Obito glared at him from behind his

mask before shooting several giant kunai at him out of his vortex. Kakashi dodged them al with ease before charging the rogue Uchiha. Obito met his charge and

phased through Kakashi before kicking him in the back. Kakashi rolled with the attack and threw several shuriken at Obito. They were all absorbed into his vortex and

shot back out at Kakashi. Kakashi narrowly dodged them, avoiding all injury. Having enough, Kakashi charged up his Raikiri and was upon his former friend in an

instant.

"You really have gotten stupid, haven't you Kakashi?" Obito said as he phased through the Raikiri. He placed a hand on Kakashis back and sucked both of them into his

pocket dimension.

Hiruzen was busy staring down Madara. He knew he couldn't win this fight. He would be hard pressed to even hold the man off. But he was a former Hokage. It was

their duty to fight to protect the village, even at the cost of their own life. Summoning Enma, Hiruzen got into a fighting stance. Madara stared at him with a bored look

on his face.

"Do you really think you stand a chance against me, old man?" Madara asked mockingly. Enma was silent as he turned into a staff and Hiruzen caught him.

"You are a fool Madara! As long as one Konoha ninja stands, the will of fire will never die!" Hiruzen shouted as he charged the powerful Uchiha. Madara easily dodged

the blows, weaving in and out of them.

"This is getting boring. Allow me to show you what a real ninja is capable of." Madara said as he swung his fan at Hiruzen. The two clashed weapons, neither giving

into the other. They broke apart, and continued to trade blows back and forth between each other, with Madara having a slight advantage.

"I must admit, you are quite impressive. Shall I show you my true strength?" Madara spoke with confidence. Hiruzen stared at him calmly, still in his battle stance.

"I will kill you before you have a chance to do anything Madara!" Hiruzen shouted as he charged the man. Suddenly a Susanoo formed around Madara. Then it

continued to grow until it was the size of a Bijuu. Hiruzen stared wide eyed at the monstrous being, as adrenaline began running through his veins. Everyone had

stopped to see this spectacle.

"Meet the ultimate form of Susanoo. It's complete form. Tell me, do you still think your 'will of fire' can stand against this?" Madara asked vindictively. Hiruzen steeled

his gaze as he prepared himself.

"The village will not burn today!" Hiruzen shouted as he charged the man.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Tell me Kakashi, why do you still fight? Why not give up now, I can make a world where me and Rin never had to die. A world where sensei didn't need to give his life."

Obito asked. Kakashi glared at him.

"That would disgrace the memories of those who gave their lives for peace. You would stomp on their sacrifices? You aren't Obito. Not anymore." Kakashi said coldly.

Obito stared at him as he took off his mask.

"You need to understand Kakashi. Whether you accept this or not, it will happen. It would be easier if you stopped fighting."

"You were the one who told me, those who abandon the mission are trash, but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash. Well, those who stomp on

the memories of those who they cared about, they are the absolute worst." Kakashi said as Obito stopped for a moment.

"You are a fool Kakashi. Have fun in here while I take care of some other business." Obito said as he vanished into a vortex. Kakashis eyes widened at this. Deciding to

risk it, Kakashi used his Kamui on himself.

Appearing in the midst of the battlefield, Kakashi had to hold back a gasp. All around him was destruction. Hiruzen laid in the middle of the battlefield below a silent

Madara, dying. Anko and Yugao were bleeding out while Orochimaru was walking away. Asuma and Shikamaru weren't moving. Kurenai had a large gash going down

here stomach, while Genma was leaning up against a wall bleeding out. Gai was on the ground, his chest torn up, barely alive. Kisame looked ready to deliver the

finishing blow. Kakuzu was bearing down on the downed ninja with a bloody Hidan at his side.

The desire to protect his comrades kicked in. Fear of losing everyone he cared about again ran through him. Adrenaline kicked in. Moving at speeds he didn't know he

was capable of, he kicked Kisame away from Gai, before appearing behind Kakuzu with a Raikiri. He pierced the man, before wrenching his arm free and driving the

lighting blade through Hidans skull. Madara looked over at the man in interest as he made his way across the battlefield, attempting to save all of his comrades.

"Why is it that he is so strong suddenly?" Madara asked to no one in particular. He heard a cough to his side and looked down at Hiruzen.

"I told you… as long as one Konoha ninja stands… the will of fire will never burn out!" Hiruzen shouted.

"Allow me to extinguish this flame then." Madara said with cruelty in his voice as he made his way to the powerful Hatake. Kakashi saw him approach and charged the

man with another Raikiri, his reserves nearly empty at this point. Madara stared at him in interest before he caught his wrist. He absorbed the chakra from the blade

and stabbed Kakashi through the stomach with a kunai. Kakashis eyes widened in pain before he began coughing up blood.

"Tell me, what does it feel like to know you can do nothing to save your friends? Does it hurt? Enrage you? Do you seek revenge?" Madara questioned sadistically.

"Not revenge… Justice!" Kakashi said as he turned into lightning electrocuting the Uchiha. Madaras eyes widened as the pain shot through his body. Suddenly he felt a

piercing pain shoot through his body as blood shot from his shoulder. An electrified kunai shot through his body. Glancing over his shoulder he saw Kakashi panting on

one knee.

"I… missed…" Kakashi panted out. Madara laughed at this as he covered the bleeding wound.

"Very impressive. I didn't expect you to even get one scratch on me, yet you almost had a chance to kill me. Unfortunately for you, it didn't work." Madara said as he

walked towards the downed Hatake. He picked up a stray sword from one of the dead Anbu and looked down at Kakashi.

"Are you prepared to die?" Madara said as he swung the blade down.

"Are you?!" A voice shouted. Madaras eyes widened as suddenly a Rasengan was driven into his stomach. He skidded back a few feet before backhanding the culprit.

Madara looked up in shock as he was staring down the reinforcements. Standing across from his was none other than Naruto Uzumaki. Flanking him were the Uchiha

brothers, the Shodaime and Nidaime, and Orochimaru.

The group surveyed the damage and killing intent filled the air at what they saw. Death everywhere. Naruto began shaking as his anger built up.

"Madara… you are pure destruction. I will end this now!" Hashirama shouted as he charged his old friend. Madara prepared to meet his charge when a vortex

appeared in front of him, causing both men to pause.

"Madara, I've got the woman. We are leaving now." Obito said as he grabbed Madara and faded away. A few seconds later the entirety of the Akatsuki disappeared in

puffs of smoke. The group glared at the spot that they had been while Naruto was beginning to panic.

'I just got a mother… I can't lose her! Not yet!' Naruto thought. Getting an idea, he donned his Bijuu cloak. Everyone stared at him in wonder as he closed his eyes to

focus. After a few moments they snapped open and he looked off into a random direction.

"There! That's where they went!" Naruto shouted. Itachi placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Naruto… the village is in ruins. I know it's your mother, but I can't afford to leave the village unguarded at a time like this. I can't let you go after her." Itachi said

sternly. Naruto looked at him in shock.

"You… you expect me to just let them kill her?! Then what, they unleash the Juubi! Fuck that, I'm going after them! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted as he turned to leave.

"I suppose I can't stop you. But Naruto, if you fail, they will have the Kyuubi for sure. Are you sure you want them to have that kind of power?" Itachi asked trying to

reason with the boy.

"… I won't lose. Not when I have someone to protect!" Naruto shouted with confidence.

"Then go. We have to protect the village. Hurry. Hashirama, go with him." Itachi ordered. The Shodaime nodded and he and Naruto disappeared into the distance.

Itachi got a solemn look on his face as he took count of the casualties. Hiruzen was dead. So was Asuma. Gai was in critical condition. At least six squads of Anbu dead.

Kakashi was near death from chakra exhaustion. Genma was dying, Kurenai was severely injured. Anko and Yugao were bleeding out. There was a good hundred

other dead with several hundred injured in the battle, some of which were civilians. Itachi swallowed the lump forming his throat before issuing out orders to treat the

wounded, prioritizing those who were close to death first. Itachi sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he watched the medics get to work.

"Itachi… There was nothing we could have done. If we waited for them to bring the fight here, things would be the same. Nothing could be done to avoid this. It pisses

me off too, but at least we stopped it before everyone died." Sasuke said to his brother.

"I know Sasuke… I know…" Itachi said as he made his way to the hospital.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Let me go!" Kushina shouted as she struggled against her restraints.

"I'm afraid I can't do that Kushina." Obito said as he approached her with the entirety of the Akatsuki.

"Obito? Why are you doing this? What happened to the little boy who wanted to be Hokage?" Kushina asked. Obito got a dark look on his face at hearing this.

"The Hokage's are all fools. I'm glad my sensei was a Hokage. It made me realize that the Hokages were all failures." Obito said. Kushina glared at him at hearing this.

"You are saying my husband was a failure? I'll tell you this, he was more of a man then you will ever hope to be!" Kushina shouted. Obito laughed hollowly before

responding.

"And which one of us is still alive? Which one of us is able to bring peace to the world? That's what I thought." Kushina continued to glare at him as the Akatsuki

surrounded her. She didn't recognize most of them.

Surrounding her was Sasori, Orochimaru, Kakuzu, Hidan, Kisame, Obito, and Madara.

"An Uzumaki, huh? I'll gladly end your pathetic clan." Madara said calmly as he looked down at the woman. He summoned the Gedo Mazo and they prepared for the

sealing. Suddenly the roof of the cave was blown off. The Akatsuki looked up to see two ninja staring down at them.

"So, you still want to fight, eh? You are going to die here you know." Madara asked.

"Even so, I will kill you before dying." The other man said. Rinnegan met Rinnegan as Madara stared down Nagato.

"Let's test this then!" Madara shouted as he charged the red haired man. The two put out one palm and shouted in unison.

"Shinra Tensei!"


	9. Chapter 8

Itachi Uchiha: Turn Back the Pendulum

Chapter 8

Uzumaki vs Akatsuki

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"Shinra Tensei!" The two waves of gravity collided causing an enormous shockwave to tear through the cave, shattering the walls and roof into different directions.

Everyone barely managed to keep their footing as the shock wave dissipated.

"You seem to have grown accustomed to those eyes boy. Need I remind you, they were my eyes first?" Madara warned as he got into a battle stance. Nagato took on

a stance of his own, while Konan and the rest of the Akatsuki tensed up. Nagato and Madara continued staring each other down, neither one making a move. Madara

suddenly sprung out into hand seals and sent a torrent of flames at Nagato. Putting his hands up, Nagato absorbed all of the fire in one go before his arm unhinged

and shot out several rockets at Madara. Madara dodged them with ease as they set off several explosions on the ground. The two disappeared from sight and were

suddenly engaged in a taijutsu battle. Neither side seemed to have the upper hand as they fought with everything they had. Obito and the others attempted to step

in, but they were blocked off by what seemed like endless exploding tags coming their way. They were forced to dodge to the other side of the mini-battlefield as

Konan appeared in a flurry of paper. Kushina looked up at her from her restraints then looked back at the battle between Nagato and Madara.

"What the hell is going on…?" Kushina mumbled. Konan glanced down at her before forming a blade out of paper. Kushina glared at her as she watched her take a

swing at her. Suddenly the seals holding her bindings in place were torn apart as Konan returned her attention to her battle. Kushina looked surprised for a second

before grinning viciously. Standing next to Konan, she glared at the Akatsuki who seemed to be unaffected by this.

"What the fuck are we waiting for, we can cut these fucking bitches throats now!" Hidan shouted as he charged recklessly. His charged was met with intense pain as

he was skewered by several hundred paper shuriken. Kakuzu summoned his five hearts while Sasori summoned several puppets. Orochimaru slipped into the shadows

to observe the fight while Obito and Kisame stared down the duo.

"You don't honestly think you can beat all of us, do you?" Obito asked. Kushina glared at him.

"You are a disgrace to your sensei and your teammates Obito. I don't know why you became this way, and honestly, I don't care. You are a monster now, and I will

settle this before anyone else gets hurt! Dattebane!" Kushina shouted as she summoned several chakra chains out of her back. They tore through the puppets Sasori

sent at her and killed one of Kakuzus hearts. Obito charged at her, phasing through the chains and was upon her. He took several swipes to try and catch her, but she

dodged expertly. Obito growled as went to disappear, but was struck in the side with paper shuriken. He disappeared from sight after that, his chakra signature

completely gone. He appeared behind Konan and caught her wrist and twisted it behind her head as he placed a kunai at her throat.

"What does it feel like knowing you're going to die? That no one will remember you?" Obito whispered to her. Konan struggled against his grip as he laughed.

"You are going to die now." Obito said as he ran the kunai across her throat. Instead of coughing up blood like he had expected, the sound of shredding paper was

heard. Sighing her turned around to see a slightly panting Konan staring him down, while Kushina futilely fought against Kisame, Kakuzu, and Sasori.

"You're all going to die you know. Why do you continue to fight?" Madara asked calmly as he and Nagato continued their battle. Nagato stared at him with equal

composure.

"A boy once fought me… he was able to beat me. At first, it seemed unfathomable, a simple boy beating a god. Then I realized it. It wasn't about difference in strength.

It was what we were fighting for. He fought to protect those he cared for. I fought to instill pain in everyone. He taught me that my way wasn't right. So now, I will

stop you. Even if it costs me my own life!" Nagato shouted as he summoned several beasts. Madara stared at them bored before making his own hand seals.

"Summoning Jutsu!" Suddenly the area was will with dozens of undead ninja. Nagato, Kushina, and Konan froze as they saw how immensely they were outnumbered.

"Do you still persist to fight us? Even against these odds?" Madara asked, genuinely curious. Nagato steeled his gaze.

"Allow me to show you… my might!" Nagato shouted as he threw a chakra receiver at Kushina, piercing her arm.

"What the hell?! I thought we were on the same side!" She shouted. Suddenly she felt a pull on her as she appeared distance away next to the six paths of pain and

Konan.

"What just happened?" Kushina asked.

"I summoned you out of the battle field. You would only get in the way." Deva path said as he stared in the distance.

"So you removed your allies from the battle? Either you are very confident, or very foolish." Madara said as the Akatsuki and Edo Tensei ninja surrounded Nagato.

"I may be a fool. But I will not allow your plans to come to fruition. Prepare yourselves… Chibaku Tensei!" Suddenly a black orb shot up from Nagato into the sky and

began pulling everything in the area towards it. Nagato coughed up a small amount of blood as he used to the jutsu.

Madara stared at the jutsu in interest as all of his comrades were quickly being dragged into it. Madara smirked as a thought came to mind.

"Tengai Shinsei." A giant meteor formed in the sky and began to crash upon the slowly forming ball of earth. The jutsu clashed, creating an enormous explosion

sending debris everywhere. Nagato began panting heavily as Madara stared him down barely breaking a sweat.

"Do you see now how outmatched you are?" Madara asked. Nagato glared at him as the Akatsuki began to surround him. Glancing around himself Nagato took a deep

breath. He summoned his six paths and they each stared down one of the Akatsuki members.

"You think you can win fucker? We'll rip your fucking head off, then your fucking eyes out!" Hidan shouted as he charged human path. The path side stepped him and

swiped his legs out from under him. Placing a hand on the mans head, the path jerked its arm to the side, visibly pulling out Hidans soul.

"One down. Who's… next…?" Nagato panted out as blood slowly poured from his mouth. Kisame, Obito, Kakuzu, Sasori, and Orochimaru all tensed while Madara merely

stared him down with indifference.

"You managed to kill the weakest of us. Oh so impressive. You also seem to be a bit tired." Madara said sarcastically. Nagato leveled a glare on him. Killing intent slowly

began to rise off of the Uzumaki. There was a chill forming in the air, and Nagatos chakra was nearly visible with the amount he was pumping out. Madara looked on

curiously at this while everyone else developed a cold sweat. The chakra levels could be felt for miles.

"Shinra… Tensei!" Nagato shouted as he pumped all of his chakra into it. The resulting pulse of gravity was greater than any of them could have expected. Sasori was

shattered on impact, Obito managed to slip into his vortex in time, Orochimaru continually shed his skin, burning through nearly all of his chakra in the process, just

barely escaping. Kakuzu lost three of his hearts in one go. Kisame had his arm ripped off as he was sent careening through the air. The one who got the brunt of the

attack though was Madara. He was nearly crushed by the force, several of his bones shattering on impact. He was sent flying, tearing through the landscape itself. He

came skidding to a halt on his side and looked up, blood dripping from his mouth, bruises and cuts covering his form.

Looking around himself, Madara had to admit he was impressed. The amount of destruction that jutsu had caused was astronomical. The crater that was caused was

at several miles in diameter. Madara attempted to stand up, but fell to the ground coughing up blood. Now his anger began to boil. This pathetic Uzumaki, this traitor,

had nearly killed him. It was unheard of for anyone to even lay a hand on him, better yet put him at deaths door.

Standing in the center of the crater was Nagato. However he looked nothing like he did before, as his hair was pure white, his skin aged, and his body decrepit. He

was panting heavily before he fell to his knees, coughing up blood. He looked toward Madara in the distance and saw the nearly dead man. Using the last vestiges of

chakra he had left, he picked up sharp piece of rock and carefully aimed at the downed Uchiha.

"Shinra Tensei…" Nagato whispered as he shot the rock at Madara. Madara's eyes widened at the incoming object, but his body wouldn't respond to his attempts to

dodge. Suddenly the rock was sent flying off course Madara used his gravity control to send the rock off course.

"Damn it…" Nagato said as he continued coughing up blood. The air in front of him warped as Obito appeared in front of him.

"I told you I would have your eyes." He said coldly. Nagato glared up at the man, coughing up blood. Obito got a cruel look on his face as he reached out at Nagato.

"I hope you are able to handle pain, Pain." Obito mocked as he shoved his fingers into Nagatos right eye socket and ripped his eye out of his head. Nagato screamed

in agony as his eye was ripped out of his face. Nagato clutched his bleeding eye socket as he began to feel the chakra exhaustion setting in. Obito went to reach for

his second eye when he was forced to dodge back to avoid being hit.

"Get the fuck away from him!" Came Narutos voice as he charged Obito with a Rasengan. Obito allowed him to phase through before kicking him in the side of the

head from behind. Naruto rolled with the hit as he continued to assault Obito, spawning several clones to attack him from every angle.

"You won't win. You are weaker than me." Obito said coldly. Naruto glared at him before continuing his charge.

"That's where you're wrong. He has something to protect!" Hashirama's voice came from behind him. Obito tensed up as he phased through the two of them, letting

them nearly crash into each other. He hopped next to the downed Madara and placed a hand on him, absorbing him into his pocket dimension. Obito, however, chose

to stay.

"You all are becoming quite a thorn in my side. Why won't you just accept the peace I offer you?" Obito asked earnestly. Naruto glared at him while Hashirama relaxed

his stance.

"What you want isn't peace! It is pretty much slavery! That's not what ero-sennin would have wanted. Peace comes from understanding and forgiveness! Not from

some special eye thing! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted at Obito.

"You… you really are a fool aren't you? There is no such thing as true peace! You're al idiots if you believe that! I will personally destroy that faith you have in peace!"

Obito shouted as he charged Naruto. Naruto huffed then donned his cloak and met his charge.

"Naruto, no! It's a trap!" Hashirama shouted as he attempted to come between the two men. He wasn't fast enough as the two clashed and both disappeared into

Obito's vortex. Hashirama cursed as he couldn't sense the two. Kushina landed by his side while Konan was instantly by Nagato's side.

"Nagato! Nagato! Please don't die! Don't die, not now! I can't have lost you both!" Konan cried to her last friend. Nagato looked at her with a small smile on his face.

"Konan… Don't worry. My death is not in vain. Naruto is the hope of the future. He will be the bringer of peace. I gave it my all, but I still didn't have enough. He,

though, is more powerful than me. He can defeat those who oppose peace. He can be the bringer of Yahiko and my dreams. Konan, thank you for being my friend.

Please… don't die…" Nagato said as he drifted off. Konan silently wept as her friend stopped moving. Kushina and Hashirama were silent as they watched the woman

lament Nagato's death.

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The world spun for Naruto as he was thrown into an alternate dimension, and then was tossed into a desert. He looked up and saw Obito appearing out of his

dimension.

"What the fuck?! Why did you bring me here? So your goons can help you gang up on me?!" Naruto shouted. Obito glared at him coldly.

"No. This will just be you and me. I fully intend for you to learn how weak you truly are, by my hands alone." Obito said as he got into a fighting stance. Naruto glared

at him as he too prepared to fight. There was a moment of silence. Then the wind blew slightly, the sunning lightly burning their skin. There was several vultures flying

in the sky, looking for an easy meal. Everything exploded into action. Naruto charged Obito at high speeds. Obito matched his speed, shocking the Uzumaki. As they

were about to collide, Obito phased through Naruto and went to kick him in the back. He was blocked by a chakra arm appearing out of Naruto's back. Clicking his

tongue, Obito phased through Naruto's counter attack and slammed his heel into the Uzumaki's face. Naruto spun with the hit and attempted to bisect Obito with his

claws. Instead of phasing through this attack, Obito ducked under the swipe and slammed a fist into Naruto's stomach, sending the younger boy flying through the air.

"You hit hard…" Naruto said as he wheezed before standing back up. Obito started making hand seals before blowing out a giant stream of fire. Then he used his

Kamui to warp the flames into a spiral, increasing their strength and range exponentially. Naruto dodged into the air and formed a Rasenshuriken.

"Take this! Dattebayo!" Naruto shouted as he through the jutsu at Obito. Obito looked at the incoming ball with disinterest. He moved at high speeds, dodging the

jutsu. He let a long black chain slide out of his sleeves and charged Naruto. Naruto made a Rasengan and met his charge. Obito smirked slightly as he phased through

the attack. Just as he made it through he wrapped the chains around Naruto's arm and wrenched it back, slamming the Rasengan into Naruto.

Naruto screamed in pain as his own powerful jutsu was used to tear into his shoulder. Obito didn't let up, as he spun Naruto around in a circle with the chain, building

up momentum. Naruto was about to counterattack, but just as he attempted to grab the man with his chakra arm, Obito became intangible, sending Naruto flying.

"That's really fucking annoying you know!" Naruto shouted as he landed on his feet and skidded back.

"Are you beginning to realize how hopeless this truly is?" Obito asked. Naruto glared at him and snorted.

"As if. You're just scared that I'm going to win, so you're trying to psyche me out. Dattebayo!" Naruto replied. Obito narrowed his eyes at this.

"Allow me to show you just how outmatched you truly are." Obito said as he made a single hand seal. Suddenly wooden spikes began to protrude from his right arm.

He pointed his arm at Naruto and the spikes shot forward, nearly piercing the Jinchuriki, who made a frantic dodge. Obito charged at high speeds to capitalize on

Naruto's surprise. He swiped at Naruto, slicing his chest with the wooded spikes on his arm. He whirled on his heel and slammed his foot into Naruto's face before

catching the airborne boy's ankle and slamming him into the ground. Not halting his attack Obito slammed a spike through Naruto's stomach. Naruto screamed in pain

before he punched the Uchiha away. He hit Obito just in time before he could phase through the attack.

Naruto let the Kyuubi cloak disappear and went still. Obito began stalking over and started to laugh hollowly.

"Have you finally given up? Do you see now?" Obito said as he stood over Naruto. His eyes widened as he looked at Naruto's face and he dodge the wooden spike

that Naruto threw at him. Naruto stood, with orange pigments around his eyes. When he opened his eyes he had horizontal rectangles for pupils, and his iris were

golden in color. Obito glared at him as Naruto stared across at him.

"Let's see how you do against a sage." Naruto said calmly. Obito looked on, slightly angered that the boy dare challenge him. Obito ran at Naruto and phased threw a

straight punch. Naruto waited until the last second of collision and batted away his hand and planted a foot into Obito's stomach, sending the man flying across the

desert ground. Obito rolled onto his feet, a bit of blood trailing out of his mouth, but generally looking unaffected by the attack.

"If that's the best you have to offer… Then you are pathetic." Obito said as he vanished into his vortex. Naruto closed his eyes and waited. Suddenly he felt a chakra

source appear behind him. Spinning on heel, Naruto backhanded Obito just as he appeared. Obito was knocked through the air by the attack. He landed on his feet

and glared at Naruto who had yet to move from his spot. Suddenly the Uzumaki disappeared. Obito was barely able to trace the movement and dodged to the left as

Naruto's heel landed where he had just been standing. Obito attempted to backhand Naruto who ducked and went to swipe Obito's legs out from under him. Obito

phased through him and kicked Naruto in the side of the head. Naruto barely felt the hit as he punched the Uchiha in the gut causing him to cough of blood. As if he

hadn't just been hit, Obito kicked Naruto in the stomach and stood across from him. The two were bleeding heavily at this point, but neither appeared to be in much

pain.

"I will admit Naruto. You are stronger than I expected. But you still won't win against me!" Obito shouted as he charged the Uzumaki. Naruto met his pace and created

a Rasengan. Obito narrowed his eyes as the two got closer. It all came down to a split second. Everything seemed to go silent. The two forces were inches from each

other. Just as they were about to collide sand wrapped around Obito causing his eyes to widen.

"What?!" Obito shouted as he phased through the sand and Naruto and jumped a distance away. Standing off to the side was none other than Gaara.

"You think I wouldn't notice a fight of this caliber in my desert? You are truly a fool then." Gaara said monotonously as he sent more sand at Obito. Naruto stared in

surprise at his fellow Jinchuriki. Obito glared at the duo before he began disappearing into his vortex.

"I told you Naruto, you cannot defeat me. It took your little friend to not die. Remember that." Obito said as he disappeared.

"Naruto. It seems that the Akatsuki are making their final move." Gaara said as he turned his head slightly towards Naruto. Naruto wiped some blood off of his face

before looking angrily at the place where Obito had stood.

"Yeah… They are trying to finish what they started. And I'm not gonna let them do it." Naruto said as he started wobbling. Gaara's sand caught him before he could fall,

then was used to carry Naruto back to Suna.

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"You lost Naruto?!" Sasuke shouted at the former Hokage. Kushina was with Mikoto, who was trying to console her.

"I don't know what happened after he disappeared. Their chakra signatures were just gone." Hashirama said solemnly. Sasuke was furious that his best friend was

lost.

"I'm going to find him." Sasuke said with finality. Itachi leveled a look on him before sighing.

"For once, I agree with this rash decision. If Naruto is captured, then hope may be lost. We are going to have to spread out and find him." Itachi said, determined.

"What would you have us do?" Hashirama asked.

"Get ready. You are going to go with Tobirama. Your job is enter sage mode, and then, with Tobirama's help, you are to move throughout the elemental nations as fast

as possible to try and sense Naruto Uzumaki." Itachi said from his desk. Hashirama nodded and left to find his brother.

"What do you expect me to do then? Just sit here and wait?!" Sasuke shouted. Itachi had a small smirk grace his face.

"What I expect you to do is to make a scene." Itachi said. Sasuke looked at him inquisitively.

"You, as well as Orochimaru and Kakashi are to hunt down every known location the Akatsuki have used. Raze the hideouts. I intend for us to flush them out." Itachi

said. Sasuke too had a smirk on his face now.

"Yes Hokage-sama."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"That traitor managed to nearly kill us, and then that child nearly killed you. Apparently the Uzumaki are not to be trifled with." Madara said. He was currently in bed,

covered in bandages. Obito glared at the elder Uchiha.

"He did not almost kill me." Obito said sternly.

"Whatever you wish to believe. The fact is, the Akatsuki were nearly decimated by one man." Madara said. Obito went silent in contemplation.

"I have the Rinnegan now. They have no hope of defeating us now." Obito responded. Madara ignored him, instead looking at the ceiling above him. Obito glared at

the man one last time before leaving phasing away. He appeared in a distant forest and put his mask on. He made began to walk aimlessly reflecting on his previous

fight. The Uzumaki boy was strong. Almost too strong. But he wasn't strong enough to stop him.

Why did that irritate him? Why was he angry that Naruto wasn't stronger enough to defeat him? Obito couldn't quite comprehend this feeling. He expected to win, for

his plan to be successful. So why did he feel some form of connection to this boy?

Pushing aside these thoughts, Obito noticed he had entered a town. Tanzaku Town. He had not been here since he was a chunin. Oddly enough there was no

nostalgia that came with the return. Obito had no need for those feelings, they just left him feeling hollow and angry. He walked around the town, seeing happy

couples and children running around. He saw gamblers losing all of their money. There appeared to be a festival of sorts going on. Obito couldn't stand it. How could

they be happy when there was a war going on? How could they go on and enjoy life when people were dying? What was this? What was going on? This didn't make

sense. It almost seemed like they were… peaceful.

Denying these thoughts Obito began to feel his rage build up. This wasn't true peace, this was just a shadow of it. At any moment they could break out into violence

over a game gone wrong, over someone getting drunk and starting a fight. The eye of the moon plan was the only hope of true peace. Not some faith in some Uzumaki

who barely understood the concept of peace.

"Akatsuki!" A voice yelled. Obito glanced towards the voice and saw three four man groups of Anbu surrounding him. So, they were here to kill him? Fools.

Obito remained silent as he awaited the Anbu to make a move. There was a standoff, neither side making a move. The Anbu moved first, one charging in with a sword

drawn, another two attempting to flank him two jumping back out of the battlefield, and the rest preparing to make hand seals. Obito sighed in boredom as he became

intangible. The two flanking and the one charging him all clashed blades inside of him. They looked shocked as Obito slipped through the blades to the ground. Then he

became tangible and swiped out the legs of everyone surrounding him. Suddenly several fire balls and water balls were shot at him. He allowed them to simply pass

through him.

"I'm growing bored of this." Obito mocked as he easily weaved in and out of their coordinated attacks. Obito disappeared at high speeds and skewered one Anbu with

a wooden spike. The screams of all of the civilians were growing annoying. Four Anbu surrounded him and struck with their blades. Obito phased through the blades

and through one of the Anbu. He backhanded the man, piercing his skull. Not done yet, he slammed a palm onto the ground, causing several trees to grow and root

the Anbu in place. The trees then began strangling the three of them, suffocating their screams. Obito looked up to see a fireball coming at him. Using Kamui, he

absorbed the fireball, then proceeded to fire it back at the Anbu, incinerating three of them.

'Eight down. Four to go.' Obito thought as the last of the Anbu took up a defensive stance around their two medics. Obito laughed mirthlessly as he vanished using

Kamui. No longer able to sense his chakra signature, the Anbu tensed up. Suddenly it returned right in the midst of them. The two in front attempted to swing their

blades back at the man as he appeared. They were a split second to late, as they phased through him, cutting down their own comrades. Obito caught the wrist of the

man on his left, snapped it, and took the blade before cutting the arm off of the other Anbu. He wrenched the blade free from the falling arm, then sliced them both

across the chest. The two ninja hit the floor writhing in pain. Without even looking at them, he pierced their skulls with their own blades. The area was empty now, all

the civilians having run in fear.

"Fools. All of them. They think they stand a chance?" Obito said as he used Kamui to disappear.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"This is really boring." Kushina said as she sat with Mikoto in her home.

"I know you want to be on the frontline, but seriously, do you think that's a good idea?" Mikoto asked with a small smile.

"Of course! I'm gonna kick those guys asses! They won't even see it coming dattebane!" Kushina shouted as she pumped a fist into the air. Mikoto sweat dropped at

her old friends habits.

"If you say so Kushina…" Mikoto said with a sigh. Kushina laughed at this, but inside she felt hollow that her son was missing. Mikoto noticed this and stood up,

grabbing her friend by the arm.

"Come on, we're going out." Mikoto said with a smile on her face. Kushina stared blankly at her before getting a grin on her face.

"Alright, let's go." Kushina said as the duo went out. They began walking through the village, making small talk. They were in the market when they began to overhear

some of the other villagers gossiping.

"Have you heard? The demon's gone!" One villager said.

"We're finally rid of that menace."

"Although… didn't he help save us during the last two invasions?" One villager asked.

"Who cares?! He is the Kyuubi incarnate!" Kushina began shaking in anger. She moved to lash out at the villagers, but Mikoto grabbed her arm and held her back.

"It's not worth it…." Mikoto whispered. Kushina glared at her before turning the stare to the ground.

"You should be thankful." Everyone looked up at the sourced of the voice to see team Gai, minus their sensei.

"You don't seem to understand how much Naruto truly cares for this village. He loves every one of you, he fights, ready to die, to protect you all. And this is how you

honor him? By slandering him for something out of his control. How he can find it in himself to forgive you all… I don't understand." Neji said coldly.

"Yosh. Your flames of youth are dim. Naruto is a hero, he sacrifices everything for you. How can you not understand that?"

"Yeah… I don't think you all comprehend just what he's out there doing." Came Shikamaru's voice from down the road as he walked towards the group with team ten.

"You guys are all idiots! If that's how you want to act, you don't deserve his protection!" Ino shouted. Kushina was staring at all of the teens, shocked as they

defended her son. More villagers began to gather as the scene grew.

"You brats have been brainwashed by that demon. Everything that has gone wrong is because of him. He is the one who brings all the destruction to this village!"

Another villager shouted as a mob began to form.

"You don't even know Naruto! How can you say he is a demon if you don't even acknowledge him!?" Sakura shouted as she walked up next to Ino. Chouji nodded his

head fiercely in agreement.

"The guy might be a dumbass, but he sure as hell is strong, and he ain't one to just give up when someone's life is on the line. Does that sound like a demon to you?"

Kiba said as he joined the crowd.

"What has he ever done for any of us? He skates by on the coattails of everyone else, he's just a dumbass brat.

"Shut up! He is someone who gives everyone around him confidence, his will drives everyone else!" Hinata shouted shocking everyone who knew her. The crowd

began to grow restless as they argued back and forth. Suddenly and intense killing intent was felt, filling the area. Everyone froze and looked up to see Itachi standing

on a light pole, staring down at them.

"I will not tolerate disorder of this level in my village. Disperse. Now." Itachi ordered as the crowd slowly broke apart and disappeared. After the crowd was broken up,

Itachi jumped down onto the ground and looked at all of the gathered ninja.

"I should punish you for losing your cool and getting into a petty argument… but I would have done the same if I wasn't Hokage, so all I can say is… I'm proud to call

you my Shinobi." Itachi said with a small smile. The younger ninja all grinned at their Hokage's approval before a happy look appeared on his face.

"We have received word from Suna. Naruto is with the Kazekage, he was found fighting Obito in the desert near the village. The Kazekage sensed the chakra of the

fight and intervened. Naruto is all healed up and will be returning in three days. I have already sent word to the Shodaime and Nidaime to have them return." This was

met with a round of cheers. Kushina got tears of joy in her eyes that her son was safe, and everyone decided to be there when Naruto came back.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Obito was adjusting to his new eye. He Rinnegan was quite powerful he noted. He couldn't help but want to test out his new power. He glanced over his shoulder to

see the six former Jinchuriki the Akatsuki had killed. They each had a Sharingan and a Rinnegan. They all were silent, and moved at his mental commands. Obito

laughed sadistically as plans began to formulate in his head. Soon, the war would begin. All of the Bijuu had been sealed into their respective former hosts.

"Prepare yourself Uzumaki… Itachi… I will win." Obito said to no one in particular. Zetsu appeared out of the ground catching Obito's attention.

"Kabuto has done his job, however he is now dead."

"The summoning was a success."

"With all of the reincarnations we have, are plan is guaranteed."

"There is no chance of us losing now." The two Zetsu spoke back and forth. Obito smirked beneath his mask.

"Good. Let's go see our latest work." Obito disappeared into his Kamui. Zetsu melded into the ground, following his lead.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Back to the village! Come on let's hurry dattebayo!" Naruto shouted as he ran off ahead of the Suna transport team.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"That's another hideout down. No one but a few spies in this one too. I wonder where the rest of the Akatsuki is…" Sasuke said as Kakashi, Orochimaru, and him stood

in front of a destroyed cave.

"It's better if we don't find them. We honestly don't stand a chance against all of them." Kakashi commented. Orochimaru remained silent as he contemplated what his

counterpart's next move would be.

"We need to get this done quick. I have a bad feeling about the other me." Orochimaru said. The other two leaf ninja nodded as they all disappeared.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Bee, I'm getting sick of the Akatsuki walking around like they are untouchable! It's time we make a move! I am ordering a Kage summit!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Things are progressing at an interesting pace… I'm curious as to what is going to happen next." Madara thought aloud.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Where… am I?"


End file.
